


Dust Us Off

by KingWintershield



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Derek Hale, Alpha Mate Stiles Stilinski, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Stiles, Breaking Up & Making Up, Character Development, Derek Hale is a Softie, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Explicit Language, Fluff, Hale-McCall Pack, Happy Ending, Kid Fic, M/M, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Male Lactation, Mates Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Mild Sexual Content, Post Mpreg, Protective Derek Hale, Rebuilt Hale House, Scott kicked Stiles out of The Pack, Self-Indulgent, Spark Stiles Stilinski, Stiles Stilinski is Pushed Out of the Pack, and then some is like lol forget you, and then some is similar but changed, brief mention of c section, but its not like he has boobs... idk, derek is a dad, ish, its just the plot i wanted, its not that deep, like literally at all, not meant as scott hate, post pregnant stiles, scott and stiles have issues, some of the canon stuff stays, sterek, stiles can breastfeed, stiles is referred to as mama, they do that talking about their feelings thing, tiny werewolf magic baby, unrequited love: oc to stiles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-02-29
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:07:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21683455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KingWintershield/pseuds/KingWintershield
Summary: A year and a half after Derek left Beacon Hills and then Scott kicked Stiles out of the pack, Stiles found himself answering a call for help from his old friend. The Hale-McCall pack needed him again, so Stiles, along with his eight-month-old daughter Mariana, headed back to California. Already dreading seeing Scott and the others again, Stiles was on edge. What's worse was that no one told him Derek had been summoned too. And Derek hadn't been told that he and Stiles had a child.
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Comments: 37
Kudos: 1492





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was purely a self-indulgent sort of thing, it was therapeutic. Translation: It’s not that deep. 
> 
> !READ THE TAGS!
> 
> December 2020: Small update - polishing, fixing grammar, inconsistencies.

Stiles stared down at his phone, reading over the text chain for the millionth time. He still couldn’t believe he agreed to go back to Beacon Hills to help Scott again after all that happened. 

After all, it was Scott who told him he was out. It was Scott who wouldn’t let him near the pack. Who drove him away from the town and his friends and his dad. Who had fought his attempts to mend things. Who waited nearly two years to get in touch with Stiles. And it was Scott who needed his help once again. So, it was Scott and his problems who Stiles was putting life on hold for. Just like he used to do all the time. 

Stiles didn’t know if he was angrier at his old friend for daring to text him only when he needed something. Or if he was angrier at himself for being the dummy who said yes. 

But underneath Scott’s lengthy explanatory text was Stiles much shorter response: ‘Be there in three days.’ 

He was going home to Beacon Hills. Fuck. 

Stiles reluctantly packed up what he and his baby daughter would need. He only took the essentials, hoping against hope that they wouldn’t be gone from their home for too long. He wanted to get in, fix it all, and get the hell out in less than a week. But he probably wouldn’t be so lucky. And he was right about his bad luck when Mariana started to cry the moment he pulled away from their house and down the long driveway. 

When they got to Beacon Hills, Stiles made a stop by his father’s house to drop off all their stuff. His dad wasn’t home from work but Stiles still had a key. He fed Mariana and took some time to sit on the couch and get settled into his old house again. It was strange being back here. 

Once Mariana was napping, he had no distractions left. Nothing left to do before he had to see Scott again. And everyone else for that matter. And he had to introduce his baby – which was going to be a long conversation. 

\--- 

Derek left Beacon Hills, his pack, his sister, and Stiles without much explanation as to why. From the day Derek told Stiles that he was leaving, they only had a week and a half before he vanished away back to New York. 

Stiles still wasn’t sure what made him decide to go. Cora wasn’t helpful either, being just as lost about it as he was. But Stiles tried what he could to be positive. He thought maybe Derek needed some air or time to think - time alone. And that was something Stiles really understood. Derek would probably just go away for a little while and then come back home. 

Except that days became weeks which became two months. Then Stiles fucked up and Scott pushed him away. Stiles moved to Nevada. And Derek was, as far as Stiles knew, still in New York. 

\--- 

Stiles found himself standing just inside the loft’s door with several pack members staring at him and the mystery baby he brought along. 

“What the hell is that?” Erica asked, pointing across the way at Mariana. Those were the first words he had heard from his old pack and it was already not great. 

“It’s a baby, asshole,” Stiles replied quickly, holding his daughter closer to his chest. Mariana was looking around the loft curiously. She sniffed and gestured around as she analyzed what she smelled. The truth was that it probably smelled familiar to her, like her daddy Derek who she hadn’t met but knew the scent of regardless. 

The baby gave a pleased little rumble. Her earthy green eyes flashed purple before fading into a yellow glow. 

“What the hell was _that_?” Erica said, nearly repeating herself. The wolves in the room tensed as they realized the baby Stiles held was a werewolf too, their instincts warning them of foreign wolves encroaching on their territory. 

Stiles rolled his eyes and brushed his fingers carefully through Mariana’s dark peppery brown curls. “Relax. She’s only eight and a half months old. She’s not gonna hurt grown-ass wolves like yourselves.” 

Lydia sighed and came over to give Stiles a hug and greet Mariana. “Welcome home,” she whispered. “Give them a few minutes to adjust.” 

Stiles took a deep breath and nodded as Lydia guided him in towards the rest of them. It had been a little less than two years since they last saw each other and the air felt awkward. Scott was just looking at him wordlessly. 

Thank god for Allison as she asked, “What’s her name, Stiles? Is she yours?” 

“Yeah, she’s mine. This is Mariana.” Stiles sat down in the chair Boyd offered, shooting him a grateful smile. He was exhausted. “I know she smells like an outsider. I’m sure I do too by this point. Just try to cool it. You’re going to freak her out. And I don’t want her shifting right now.” 

“She can shift?” Isaac asked, astounded. “But she’s so little and young.” 

Mariana reached a hand out towards Boyd in greeting and Boyd gave her a finger to grasp on to tightly. That earned him a big bright smile mirroring Stiles’ own. “Nice to meet you, Mariana,” he said warmly, nodding to Stiles in approval. 

“Born wolves can do a lot of cool shit, Isaac.” Stiles rummaged around in the baby bag for a plush toy and handed it off to Boyd. “Here, she’ll be entertained by this for a while.” 

Scott spoke up then, finally. “Who’s her mother?” 

His words sent a nervous thrum through Stiles’ whole body. Because he was going to have to explain everything pretty soon. “Um, that would be me. Technically.” 

“Holy shit. It actually worked?” Scott asked in awe, setting aside their problems for now – his curiosity winning out. 

When Stiles’ magic showed up, unlocked in full force after the Nogitsune, they all had researched what it could mean and what it could do. One of the unique abilities was that of any magic person – mage, witch, spark, wiccan, whathaveyou – to carry a child. 

“It worked.” Stiles flashed his purple eyes at Mariana who did it back – once again, purple fading into gold. “See? Just like me.” 

There was only silence as they watched the baby closely. It dawned on them that their uncertainty about her was because she was already immensely more powerful than any toddler should be. She was magic and a wolf. And they could feel her energy. 

“She got your magic. But she’s a werewolf too? I’m not seeing things?” Isaac asked. 

Stiles looked back at his daughter and bared his teeth. He growled playfully and chomped up and down. Mariana giggled wildly and then did the same. Her fangs fell in as she growled back and chomped. Stiles’ heart clenched and he kissed her forehead gently. “So proud of you, Mar.” 

Lydia touched Stiles again and grabbed a teething toy out of the baby bag. “Here, Sweetie. Gnaw on this for a little bit.” 

Several eyes narrowed at Lydia. “Did you know?” Allison asked. 

Lydia feigned innocence for a moment. But the questioning faces were a lot to handle. “Yes, I did. I’ve actually visited a few times. But I promised to keep it a secret.” 

“It’s not like it matters.” Stiles looked down, away from the pack. “I didn’t think I would ever be here again. So, why would my baby’s existence be something you needed to know?” 

His question went unanswered. Well, his question went unanswered by Scott. He was in charge. He kicked Stiles out. No one else could say much to it at this point. 

Instead, Erica brought up a separate point. “Okay, you’re the mother then. Who is her father?” 

“Would you believe me if I said it was Keanu Reeves?” 

\--- 

Cora parked the car and turned to look at Derek with worried eyes. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” She asked. “Stiles is here.” 

Derek had been summoned, much like Stiles, by Scott. He got in from New York a few days earlier and was staying in the Hale House with Cora and some of the others who crashed there. 

That first night back, he told her how he and Stiles had been in a nebulous relationship for a while before he went away. And how he had been a major idiot for going away. Now he was nervous as hell to see him again. Stiles was supposed to be his. But he didn’t want Stiles to feel obligated to him. Now he figured Stiles hated him for leaving and ignoring his messages until Stiles stopped sending them. 

“I’ll have to see him eventually,” Derek grumbled, his eyebrows knit together. “I don’t know what I’m going to say to him.” 

Cora agreed and squeezed Derek’s shoulder. “Start slow. He will have a lot more words than you do so… you can probably let him say his piece first, if you want.” 

Derek grunted and popped out of the car. He pulled on his jacket and gave one last look at Cora for support before heading inside. He could hear Stiles’ heartbeat over everything else as the elevator took them up. Once the doors were open, he could smell him too. No one else mattered right now. The rest of the pack’s noises and smells faded into an odd blob that he couldn’t focus on if he tried. Stiles was the only thing on his mind. 

The next thing he knew, he was standing a few feet away from Stiles. He locked eyes with him, looking down to where he was sitting on the floor with Lydia and Scott. “Stiles...” he whispered softly, wanting to reach out and pull him into a hug but knowing that he couldn’t with everyone watching. Besides, Stiles may not want to touch him ever again. 

Derek’s wolf itched under the surface. He knew Stiles was their mate. His wolf longed for him to jump forward and kiss Stiles, embrace him, bite him. There was something else the wolf wanted. It tugged at Derek to pay attention, but Derek couldn’t look away from Stiles’ warm amber eyes. 

A shrill peel of laughter burst through his haze. He blinked in surprise and looked to Stiles’ right. The source of the noise was a little baby girl, sitting up on her own, reaching her hands out towards Derek. 

His first thought was how much she looked like Stiles. She smelled like him too. Derek scrunched his face up in confusion as he assessed the child. She smelled like family – like Hale. She smelled like Derek. She _looked_ like Derek. 

Derek pulled his head back quickly, darting his eyes back to Stiles. His face was stony and set, giving nothing away even as his heart beat rapidly in his chest. “Stiles?” 

“Well,” Erica stated flatly. “that is _not_ Keanu Reeves.” 

\--- 

“What the hell, man?” Stiles whispered harshly. “You didn’t tell me he was going to be here.” He looked away from Scott and back to the couches. Derek sat on the ground with Mariana, just watching her play with blocks and animals. He hadn’t said much but the baby was trying to talk to him. She had a lot to babble at her newfound dad. Lydia glanced over and gave Stiles a reassuring smile. She was the only one in the room that Stiles trusted with his daughter – and that included Derek. 

“I thought we needed him.” Scott shrugged. “It’s not like I knew you had a baby with Derek Hale. I didn’t even know you were together.” 

Stiles scoffed sharply. He was mad at everyone right now. Lydia was the only one he liked. And, quite frankly, he thought that he and Lydia could figure this whole mess out on their own anyway. Just send everyone else home so they could strategize and then tell the wolves what to do. 

He was also so tired. Driving for that long took it out of him. “Fuck...” he added, rubbing his face in his hands and leaning back on the counter. 

“I think it might be better if we leave this alone for now,” Scott said as calmly as he could. “For now, everyone needs to get settled down. Tomorrow, we work out our plan. Once this is over, we can go at it if we want.” 

That just annoyed Stiles more. Since when was Scott the type to ignore his issues with someone until after a crisis was over? How many stupid arguments did Stiles have to endure from his best friend while they ran away from something that wanted to kill or eat them? “Okay, fine. Let’s ‘settle down’ and save the fucking town again first.” 

“Thanks.” Scott went back to the group and sat down by Isaac. 

Stiles stood on the outskirts of the circle. He wasn’t pack anymore so why should he settle in with them as he would have before. Besides, they were all more focused on Mar than anything so he could remain invisible. 

But he didn’t have much choice in the matter when Kira asked, “So, when did you and Derek...?” 

Derek glared up at her, a deep blush spreading over his cheeks despite himself. “I don’t think we have to talk about that,” he said sternly, sparing a glance over at Stiles for confirmation. 

“Why not?” Stiles countered. “I don’t mind explaining, if you don’t want to.” He smirked devilishly and took a step closer to the group. “After all, you don’t even know the whole story so it’s kind of not yours to tell anyway.” 

Derek was silent. He kept his eyes on Stiles for a few moments before looking back to Mariana as she tried to get into his lap. She knew who Derek was. The wolf in her knew the second he was close enough to sniff. 

“Don’t have anything to say to that?” Stiles checked. “Great. Here’s what happened.” 

Stiles shrugged. “It’s really simple. We were together for a few months that summer. I guess you would call it dating. We hung around each other alone. Didn’t really do anything besides talk or just be together. And, yes, we fucked. But I will withhold the lascivious details. You all don’t need to hear that.” There were some relieved sighs and some disappointed grunts in response. “Then Derek left. I ended up in Nevada. I found a little pack, found out about the baby, they helped me with everything. Now, she’s almost nine months old. And that’s the whole story.” 

It wasn’t the whole story. But Stiles didn’t feel like going into every single thing that happened while he was away. “And, for the record, I did try to call and text Derek about a million times these last eighteen months. Just thought I should put that out there before anyone starts trying to blame me for shit.” 

The room was uncomfortably quiet. There were too many people here. And Stiles was worked up. He couldn’t handle the way that Derek looked at him. It made him ache. He was dangerously close to falling into Derek’s arms and forgiving him for it all and going home with him right that second. 

Mariana broke the silence with a sneeze. Stiles gently wiped the snot from her nose with a tissue. “Lots of new smells today,” he said quietly but warmly to his baby girl. “Tiny wolfie’s nose is working overtime, huh?” 

Mariana sniffled at Stiles and held out her hands for him. He took her gently from Derek’s lap and held her to his chest. Stiles didn’t notice that Derek was smelling him. He pressed his face to the crook of Stiles’ neck before either of them realized what was going on. “Hey.” Stiles yanked away from him. “Don’t scent me, Sourwolf. Fight your instincts, pal.” 

Derek growled low as Stiles and their daughter walked away from him. “Stiles!” he yelped, popping off from the ground. He snatched Stiles’ wrist carefully to stop him. “We need to talk.” 

\--- 

The loft didn’t lend itself to privacy with the big open room and giant window. And a pack of wolves with super-hearing was going to hear them no matter what. But Stiles followed Derek upstairs to the bathroom anyway. “What do you want to talk about?” Stiles asked bluntly. He hopped up on the countertop and held Mariana so she could still see Derek. 

“I’d like to discuss the final season of _Game of Thrones_ ,” Derek quipped. “Idiot. I want to talk about our daughter.” 

Stiles only half-appreciated the sarcasm because the insult was harsh. It was a lot like old Derek – before the two of them realized they could actually be friends. “Don’t call me an idiot in front of my kid.” 

Derek sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Sorry. You’re right. That was rude… especially to you.” 

Stiles nodded. “I mean, you’re the one who slept with this idiot. And I’m the idiot who has taken care of our daughter all this time. You know, trying to be the best single parent I can be. That’s the idiot I am. But you’re the idiot that left so…” 

Derek huffed a sigh and sat down on the edge of the bathtub. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called you that.” 

Mariana stared at him intently. It was new to be in a room with both her parents. She made a gurgle of noise and bounced on Stiles’ leg, much more excited to be here than either of them. 

“God, Stiles,” Derek reached out to hold her hand, relaxing at the overwhelming feeling of family and pack that came with proximity to Stiles and their baby. “Why didn’t you tell me?” 

“No, don’t do that.” Stiles gave him a warning glare. “I tried to tell you. I called and called all the time. I texted you. I tried to get your address in New York. I couldn’t get through to you.” 

“I was away for a while...” 

Mariana turned away from Derek and touched Stiles’ face to comfort and calm him down. “I wanted you to be part of this.” Stiles continued, “I wanted you to come back to us and help me. I needed you. I wanted you to be her father but you weren’t here.” He kissed her curls and sniffled. “She is the most extraordinary baby in the world. I’m sure of it. She’s got magic like my mother and myself. But even if she didn’t, she would be magic anyway. I can’t believe she came from two complete fucking morons like you and me.” 

Derek was thoroughly put in his place. He knew he fucked up. And it might take Stiles a long goddamn time to forgive him. But he wanted to be with him, he always had. “You deserve good things, Stiles. And she deserves you. I know how fiercely you protect people you love. She’s just as lucky to have you as you are to have her.” Derek touched Stiles’ knee and smiled hopefully. “Can I hold her, please? You can rest for a few minutes.” 

“Sure,” Stiles said eventually. He passed Mariana over to him and relaxed back. “She likes you. I hate that.” 

“No, you don’t.” Derek eased up significantly once he had Mariana in his arms. It felt like a giant missing piece had moved back into place. This was his daughter. His daughter. “You love that she likes me. You want us to get along together. I know you.” 

Stiles scoffed. It was true. But Derek didn’t have to say it in such plain terms. Yes, he would love for his little girl to know her daddy. But he hadn’t decided yet how much or how often. He was still furious at him, after all. 

It was quiet in the bathroom for a few long minutes. Stiles watched as Mariana flashed her eyes at Derek and giggled happily when he did it back – over and over. Then Derek lowered his fangs to show off but got knocked on his ass in shock when her tiny fangs dropped too. 

“She has her fangs already?” he asked, totally in awe of her. 

Stiles nodded. “Yeah, she got them early. We’re still working on not biting people when she’s frustrated.” He paused and looked up at Derek. “Pretty sure she gets that from her Daddy.” 

Derek practically melted into a werewolf puddle. “Oh, my god... You don’t know how good it is to hear that, Stiles. That I'm her dad.” 

“I think I have a pretty good idea, hotshot.” Stiles took a quick picture of Derek and the baby. It wasn’t for him or Derek. He wanted Mar to have it when she was older – to commemorate the day she met her dad. At least, Stiles was pretty sure he only captured the moment for her. “I think she looks just like you.” 

“No,” Derek corrected. “She’s got your nose and your lips. And that smile is all you.” 

“Sure, but she has your hair color and your eyes.” 

“And my face shape, I think. A little taller face, you know.” Derek couldn’t take his eyes off her. He wanted to look at her all day every day and do nothing else. She really was incredible. 

Stiles gestured vaguely, wildly, more like he used to. “It’s a fucking good thing she has my ears, though. Mine are closer into my head, yours stick out too far. They just flap around in the wind.” 

“That’s rude, Stiles,” A smile tugged at Derek’s lips. He missed Stiles and his big mouth. 

“It’s the truth. And I think it’s high time you knew it.” Stiles felt a little more settled back in with Derek. “I guess you had to have a physical flaw, otherwise it wouldn’t have been fair to the humans, Babe.” 

Derek sighed in relief. If they could just keep up this humor and ribbing for a while, they might be able to slip back into old times. He could apologize properly. Stiles could yell at him if he needed to. Then they could be fine again. Stiles could call him ‘Babe’, ‘Sourwolf’, ‘Der Bear’, whatever he wanted. And Derek could learn to be a better mate and a better father. 

Mariana squirmed in Derek’s arms and tugged on his shirt like she was trying to climb him. “How did you choose her name?” 

“My mom told me that ‘Mariana’ was their girl’s name choice. But they never had another baby, so, she never used it. I just changed the spelling from the Polish version with a ‘j’ so, it was more universal. Lots of languages have ‘Mariana’ spelled all kinds of ways. I call her ‘Mar’ for short.” 

“I like it. I think it suits her.” Derek brushed his fingers over her hair and she squawked in pleased response. “I would have named her after Laura, I think.” He didn’t dislike her name, he loved it. He just guessed that if he had a daughter, he would have wanted to name her for his departed sister. He regretted not being there when she was named. It would have been really good to get to name her with Stiles, whatever they chose. 

Stiles crossed his arms. He understood what Derek meant but it only served to remind him that Derek didn’t get to help name her because he wasn’t even around. “Well, you _weren’t_ there,” he said, challenging him to argue about it. 

Mariana reached her arms out for Stiles, whined grumpily, and kicked her feet as hard as she could. “Oh, shit. Is she okay? What’s wrong?” Derek asked hurriedly, nervous and unsure if he was hurting her. 

“She’s fine. She’s just hungry, probably,” Stiles assured him. He unbuttoned the flannel he was wearing. “Give her to me.” 

Derek’s eyes went to Stiles’ bare skin like they always did when Stiles was undressed. He looked over long stretch marks, still lightly pink in color. And he followed Stiles’ dark trail of hair down his tummy to a wide, bright red scar that cut Stiles from side to side. 

Derek pulled himself out of his distracted gawking at the surgery scar from the c-section. Stiles brought the baby to his deceptively flat chest and she immediately began to eat, hungry and fussy as she was. Derek’s wolf rumbled at the sight of family and his mate feeding their baby. 

“I sort of forgot you would be able to do that,” Derek observed. 

“Yep. Biology is on my side for this one.” Stiles barely looked up at Derek. 

Derek moved closer. He took deep breaths in and out, wanting to memorize the sweet new scent that was Stiles’ milk. “It is okay if I watch you feed her like this?” he asked. “It’s calming me down.” He was much quieter when he added, “I missed you, Stiles. I missed my mate...” 

"You can watch. That’s okay.” Stiles knew how important this sort of bonding was for humans, let alone for exponentially more needy werewolves. And, admittedly, it was calming him down too having Derek here to look after them both. It tapped into an alpha mate instinct of wanting the alpha to protect him while he and the baby were at their most vulnerable. 

Stiles didn’t, however, comment on the mate thing. He’d heard that from Derek before. He used to say that a lot about Stiles. His wolf found a mate in him. They were supposed to be together. They were connected in more ways than one. The way Derek made it sound was so lovely. He wanted a mate for life who would love him and be there for him. And he trusted Derek to be honest about something as serious as that. 

But then he left. And Stiles had to wonder why he didn’t come back to him quickly. It really wasn’t his fault that he doubted whether Derek had been right about that whole mate thing. And if he was right, why the hell would he leave his mate all alone? Which only made Stiles spiral into thoughts of his own inadequacy. Like what if Derek changed his mind and didn’t want him as a mate? What if he was too annoying for someone like Derek to spend his entire life with? What if Derek didn’t want to settle down at all? There were way too many fears. 

Derek leaned in close to Stiles and Mariana, catching the baby’s eye as she looked at him for one curious moment. “I’m here now, Sweet Girl,” Derek whispered. “I’m your daddy.” 

Clearing his throat, Stiles knocked his foot on Derek’s leg and said, “You can talk to her. That’s okay. But you don’t have to be this close. So, maybe don’t touch me.” 

Derek looked to where his hands were on Stiles’ abdomen – specifically over the surgery scar. He hadn’t noticed he was holding him like that. “Sorry.” He took his hands back but kept staring. “That looks like it hurt, Stiles. Is it still painful?” 

Stiles shrugged. “Yeah, it hurt. But it wasn’t that bad. I mean, I was a drugged up on a numbing spell and I had two werewolves taking pain from me the whole time. I only felt it a bit. And, yes, it does still hurt a little.” 

“Don’t like that,” Derek growled, though he wasn’t certain which part he hated the most. “Don’t like that you felt anything. Or that other wolves were touching you and someone was cutting into you. Don’t like that it still hurts.” 

“Do I have to repeat myself again? You weren’t there.” Stiles frowned and tried to cover his scar with his shirt. But that only jostled Mariana who whined at him for being bothered while she was eating. 

The air in the bathroom felt thicker once again – like it was harder for them to breathe when they were at odds. “I know, Stiles,” Derek snapped. “But I could have made it better if I was there. I could have taken all your pain so you didn’t feel it. I could have helped soothe the scar so it healed faster. It wouldn’t be hurting now. And it wouldn’t look so brutal and scary.” 

“Good, so, big Alpha Derek Hale wasn’t there to help and now he’s mad at my ugly scar. That’s really unfair. This scar shows what I did to get my baby safely into this world.” 

“I didn’t say it was ugly.” Derek pressed his hands back on Stiles’ tummy again. “I can tell you still have pain even just looking at it. It healed slow. And it’s still red. And I can feel it. Under the surface. You’re in so much pain right now. Breathing hurts. Your head is throbbing. And this scar still stings. Stiles, I don’t know how you’re sitting here acting like everything is fine.” 

Stiles smacked his hand away. Something about werewolves and their short memories. He just told him not to touch. “It’s because I’ve had a lot of practice hiding pain. And I’m stemming it off with just a little magic.” 

“You shouldn’t be using any magic right now. Not so soon after having a baby.” Derek knew from watching new wolves come into his family and their restless parents unable to shift for a while after just to be safe. Preferably not until the baby was done breastfeeding. 

Mariana hiccupped and Stiles adjusted her over his shoulder. “Yeah, you’re not the first to tell me that. Besides, I’m not talking about this right now.” He patted the baby’s back lightly and rocked her side to side. “I’m so worn out. I just want to get this whole thing over with so we can go home. I would like for everything to be relatively normal again. I want to feel like myself again. I want to be with people who want me. And I want my baby to have a happy, safe life.” 

Derek fell silent. He had noticed Stiles didn’t seem much like himself. But he supposed he had a lot going on and the last year and a half had changed him a lot. “Stiles, you’re tired. So, let’s go. You can get some sleep. I’ll watch Mariana.” Derek touched Stiles’ cheek for a brief moment before getting up. “Where’s your stuff? I’ll grab it for you and we can head home.” 

“What do you mean?” Stiles carefully slid off the counter, clutching onto Mariana who was falling asleep on him. “ _We_ aren’t going anywhere,” he added, gesturing between himself and Derek. 

“Yeah, Stiles. Come on. I’m not staying in the loft. This place brings back bad memories, I don’t like sleeping here.” Derek crossed his arms. “We can go to the house. Cora put my bags in the master. It’s got a separate bathroom too. So, you and Mariana don’t have to be bothered by anyone else staying there if you don’t want to be.” 

There was another building pause while Stiles worked out how to explain this to Derek without smacking him first. “You’re not getting it. You are saying at the Hale House with, I’m sure, plenty of the others. Mariana and I are staying at my dad’s house. Casa de Stilinski. Only with my dad.” 

Derek’s face scrunched up fast. “I don’t want you doing that. That’s too far away for me to protect you there. And it’s not fortified. The pack house is.” 

“My dad’s place is plenty fortified, okay?” Stiles said. He should know, he covered the thing in runes and barriers. It took forever too. “And I don’t want to be at the pack house. I’m not pack.” 

Derek’s wolf tried to claw its way free. He wanted to grab Stiles and kiss him and tell him he was being ridiculous for thinking he wasn’t pack. “It’s my land. It’s a combined pack. It’s our family’s house. Hales belong in the Hale House. And I want you there so it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks.” 

Mariana was asleep now and Stiles brushed her long dark hair back from her eyes, reminding her that he was right here with her and she could rest easy. “Yes, Derek. You do belong in the Hale House. And you should be there. All that effort to rebuild shouldn’t go to waste.” He opened the bathroom door and added in a low voice, “But I’m not a Hale. I’ll see you tomorrow.” 


	2. Chapter 2

Stiles had just enough time to get Mariana bathed and into her pajamas before his father called him back downstairs with a shout of, “Stiles, there’s an uninvited guest here!” 

Really, at this point, there were plenty of options as to who could have decided to come over. But he knew it was Derek. His body knew Derek was here. And so did Mariana. When she laid eyes on him again, she yipped and pointed as if to say, ‘Hey! You’re back!’ 

“Why are you here, Derek?” Stiles asked. “We aren’t coming to the pack house with you.” 

“No, I know,” Derek muttered. “You made that painfully clear.” Stiles rolled his eyes at that. “But I don’t want to be away from you two. It doesn’t feel right or safe.” 

Stiles noticed the bag in Derek’s hand and he groaned. “Oh, my god.” He passed Mariana over to his dad and tugged Derek into the kitchen to talk. “Christ, Derek. You could win awards for being the worst communicator in history. Or awards for being the biggest pain in my ass. Or awards for being the most confusingly flaky werewolf ever. I mean, one day I’m important and I’m your mate and I’m pack. And then the next day nothing matters but yourself and whatever you want. And I’m not just talking about when you left for New York. This happens a lot!” 

“We’ll have plenty of time to talk about this stuff later, Stiles,” Derek countered, trying to be firm with him. “I want to be here to keep you safe. And I want to get to know Mariana and take care of her. And you. Both. So, you’re not kicking me out of this house. I refuse to go.” 

Stiles shook his head, hating that he was just shorter than Derek that he had to look up. “My dad has a gun. I have a gun!” 

“That’s not going to stop me. And I know you won’t use wolfsbane bullets on me.” 

“Fine, then we will call the station, have someone come pick you up for trespassing in the Sheriff’s house.” 

Derek was pressed close to Stiles now. Their arguing led their bodies towards one another so they were chest to chest and Derek was pushing Stiles back on the kitchen counter, his hand barely resting on Stiles’ hip. “Parrish will be on my side about this.” 

“Fuck you. And fuck Parrish.” Stiles barely registered that they were very nearly whispering into each other’s mouths at this point. 

“You have to let me stay. If anything were to happen while I was just a handful of miles away at the house… Jesus, Stiles. You have to let me stay.” Derek was begging now. 

And Stiles couldn’t keep a cold front against begging. “Goddammit. Fine.” He slipped out from between Derek and the counter, catching his breath. “Not in my bed.” 

“The floor next to it then,” Derek grumbled in annoyance. He wanted Stiles back against him immediately. He had moved away too fast. 

“On the floor like a pet dog?” Stiles snorted. “No, that’s too on the nose. Besides, you won’t like it if I trip over you on my way to go pee. We have a couch down here. You’ve slept in worse places. And I think that’s close enough to us, don’t you?” 

No, Derek did not think that was close enough. But he couldn’t push it anymore and risk Stiles actually trying to shoot him or make him leave. “Fine. I’ll sleep on the couch.” 

“Good,” Stiles mumbled. He went to find his dad holding a very sleepy Mariana in his arms. “Oh, hey little wolfie. It’s been a big day. Let’s put you to bed, yeah?” He scooped her up gently and she immediately molded to Stiles, muttering her appreciation of being back with him. “Thanks, Dad.” 

The sheriff waved him off with a happy grin. “Don’t need to thank me. It has never been a problem to hold my precious granddaughter.” 

That got to Derek. He looked over at the sheriff and then back at the baby. She only had one living grandparent. Claudia wasn’t here. And his parents were gone too. He hadn’t thought about that yet. Her only family was right here in this room, except for Cora. “I want to help get her to sleep,” Derek said, possibly a little too urgently than was called for. He just wanted Stiles to know he was serious about being a part of their lives again. “Please.” Stiles glared at him, irritated, but still gestured for him to follow. 

Derek entered Stiles’ old room for the first time in a year and half. It looked almost like Stiles had left it. He didn’t take anything with him to Nevada that wasn’t important. All his childhood and teenage knick-knacks were still sitting around. Even all his videogame stuff hadn’t made the cut for his move. Derek wondered if all the leftovers were here because Stiles was hoping he would get to come back to Beacon Hills and back to normal again. 

There was even a birthday card still pinned up on Stiles’ corkboard from his twentieth. It was the card Derek gave him – that Lydia helped him pick out – with a short note inside about how he had to leave for a while. In retrospect, writing a goodbye letter in a birthday card was idiotic. Stiles hadn’t even said anything about the content of the card for a few days until Derek started to pack up his things. Within the month, Derek was out of California. God, he felt like an asshole seeing that card in Stiles’ room. 

A room that still smelled like Stiles. Of course, it did. Derek had always loved being in Stiles’ room for that exact reason. His senses were surrounded with his mate, the man he loved. It wasn’t any different this time as he drew in a long, deep breath and let out a satisfied sigh of relief. His lips tugged up in a warm smile when he caught his own scent partially mingled in the room – on the chair, on the bed, in some of Stiles’ clothes. 

“Okay, calm down, horndog,” Stiles groused and nudged Derek’s arm. “I know that you like how it smells in here. Yet another reason I don’t want you sleeping with me.” 

Derek held up his hands in a show of false innocence. “I’m not doing a thing.” 

Mariana yawned as Stiles lowered her down into her crib. His father had gone out and bought one for Stiles to keep at the house. “Good girl, Mar. Go to sleep, Baby.” 

Derek touched her hand gingerly and watched her eyes blink slowly. “Stiles… she’s just so beautiful. She’s your daughter. No doubt.” 

“I don’t even have anything snarky to say to that,” Stiles answered. “Because you’re right. And if you’re going to say nice things about my baby, then who am I stop you?” He grinned at Derek for a flash of a moment. 

Derek snorted and shoved Stiles lightly. “Okay. Noted.” If that was the only way Stiles would let him talk to him, he was going to employ that tactic as much as possible. “What’s her full name? Does she have a middle name?” He had a middle name. Stiles did not. If Mariana didn’t have one yet, he was going to ask if he could give her one. 

“Yeah, she’s got a middle name,” Stiles whispered as the baby’s eyes stopped opening and she fell into sleep. “Mariana Daphne Hale-Stilinski.” 

“Hale?” Derek asked, barely a whisper. “You gave her my name?” He looked at Stiles, who was looking at the baby. How is it that Derek could have been so damn stupid to ever walk away from him? After that first kiss, after getting Stiles in his arms and realizing just how much he meant to him... Hell, they spent less than six months together – talking, making food together, watching movies, taking naps, having sex, making out – being at each other’s side nearly every day. And then Derek freaked out. Like he always did. And he left. 

He wanted to tell Stiles how much he loved him and missed him. But Stiles was angry. He understood that. He would have to earn his trust back, however he could. 

Stiles didn’t look at him as he said, “Yes, dumbass. I gave her the Hale name. She’s… not just a Stilinski.” That was clear. She looked like a Hale, she smelled like a Hale, she was a wolf, she was their blood. 

“I would have thought you wouldn’t do that.” Derek was getting it now. Just how difficult this must have been for Stiles to do on his own. He was an amazing parent but Derek should have always been there helping him. “It just means a lot to me, Stiles.” He didn’t think he would ever be able to explain in words how it felt to have a baby Hale that came from him and his mate. 

Stiles just shrugged. “I know it does. And I wouldn’t have felt right ignoring her Hale side.” 

Derek followed Stiles to his bed but didn’t get in like he so desperately wanted to. “Where did the name ‘Daphne’ come from?” 

“Well, uh, ‘Daphne’ means ‘laurels’,” Stiles said matter-of-factly, picking at the edge of his blanket. “So, that’s, you know, where ‘Laura’ comes from. It’s the same root meaning.” 

Derek was stunned into silence. His eyes were wide as he looked into Stiles’ own. “You… did name her after Laura.” He was close again. His body moved toward Stiles of its own accord. If Stiles came just a few inches closer… 

But Stiles shook his head and gently pushed Derek’s chest so he would back off. “Yes, I did name her after Laura. I knew that you would want that. I thought it would be a good way to honor her. And I wanted Mariana to know the Hale side of her family even if she never met any of you.” He pushed Derek back just a little more. “And I am not kissing you. I know you want me to. But we aren’t together, Derek. Not really. And I still kind of want to choke you out. And I’m trying not to feel that way because I don’t want Mar seeing that.” 

Partly, Derek wanted to argue that Stiles should just kiss him and see if he was that mad after all. But he also couldn’t help splitting a grin at the thought of Stiles being able to choke him out at all. “You couldn’t actually do that, I hope you know,” he sassed back. 

“Fuck you. I’m strong,” Stiles countered immediately. “I’ve carried around a werebaby inside me. And trust me, there has never been a Hale child who was born small, not even this one. Human babies should be like seven pounds. Werewolf babies should be around ten. Hale babies are like fourteen.” 

The image of Stiles carrying their baby was simply too much for Derek. He brushed his thumb on Stiles’ lips and his wolf whined. “Stiles, I wish I could have been there. And seen you pregnant with our baby. You’re gorgeous all the time but I can’t even imagine how good you looked then. Downright celestial.” 

“That’s the moon beast taking,” Stiles muttered, not bothered, trying not to show how flattered he was about it. Because yes, he was still so into Derek Hale. And he was still into the idea of them together and being mates. And compliments like that were dangerous. He was determined not to let his resolve crumble until Derek proved he could be there for them again. He needed to trust him with his own life and more importantly with Mariana’s life. 

Derek rumbled and hummed, leaning in to scent Stiles’ neck. Stiles let him do it this time. “You know I love you”. It wasn’t a question. He knew Stiles knew. And he wasn’t waiting for an answer as he pressed his face into Stiles’ warm, soft skin and inhaled slowly, basking in him once again. 

“Oh, god…” Stiles gasped and shuttered. His arousal was immediate and pushy. This had always been an excellent way to start any evening with Derek. “Okay, you scented me. I’m sure you feel better now. But you got to get off. I’m sorry.” He scratched his fingers through Derek’s hair and then extricated himself from under his heavy arms. “I’m sorry. This can’t happen. I… love you too, Derek. But I can’t guarantee that we will ever be like we were before.” 

Derek and his wolf were drunk on the sugary sweet scent of their mate that he couldn’t do anything else but whimper in reply. He pulled away as Stiles asked but he didn’t get up to leave. After a few seconds, he shook himself out of it enough to ask, “Can I please stay here, Stiles?” He patted the left side of the bed where he had found himself asleep several times in the past. “I won’t even touch you if you don’t want.” 

“That’s not true. You always roll over to me and latch on for dear life. I don’t think you could stop yourself from cuddling me even if I was covered in mountain ash.” 

Derek knew he was right. He would want to touch him while they slept. “So, couch downstairs then?” 

Stiles nodded. “Couch downstairs.” 

\--- 

Jackson could hardly hold back a laugh. “Alright, so, let me get this straight.” He had decided to show up after all. And here he was in a pack meeting in the Hale House getting caught up on everything - new additions to the pack, the crop of wendigos threatening Beacon Hills, the tentative plan for taking them out. But he was most interested in Stiles. 

He gestured between a very annoyed Derek holding Mariana and an extremely tired Stiles barely able to focus. “Derek fucked you – you, _Stilinsk_ _i,_ of all people – and knocked you up. Which I didn’t even know you could do. I guess, congratulations on the weird magic and the weird magic baby. But I cannot get the bizarre image of you with a pregnant belly out of my head.” 

It was no secret that Jackson didn’t have much respect for Stiles. And it was no secret he didn’t think he was the most handsome guy in the world. And Stiles normally wouldn’t care. Because what the fuck does Jackson matter? But he was still emotionally raw from excess hormones during and after pregnancy. And Jackson was talking about his baby. His miracle baby girl. And he was exhausted. So, he was mad and close to tears the second he started talking. 

But before he could do anything about it and tell Jackson off, Derek growled low and long at him. His eyes were red and he held Mariana tighter to his chest to protect her from the likes of him. “Shut up, Jackson. You arrogant prick. You will never have anything this precious and important in your life.” 

Mariana seemed to understand that Derek was defending her because she gave an appreciative yip of a noise and a word that might have been ‘yes’. She also wasn’t afraid at his growl. She was impressed. She smacked her little hand on his throat and felt the rumble subside. Another thrilled babble burst from her mouth and she looked to Stiles to make sure he was seeing how cool this was. 

Derek softened up and he smiled down at her, eyes back to normal, an embarrassed blush on his cheeks. He was pleased with himself for making his daughter so proud. At least, he thought that’s what she was trying to say – that she was proud of him. “You’re the best baby who has ever lived,” he whispered. 

“Okay, okay. I’ll give it a rest,” Jackson conceded, finally taking a seat despite having more in him to say. 

Allison spoke up, hoping to smooth things over before they got started on planning. “Stiles, I wanted to ask what you’re going to have her call Derek? Since you’re her dad. Will he be ‘Papa’?” 

It took a second for Stiles to register the question. But he sat up a little straighter and shook his head. “No. Derek is ‘Daddy’. I’ve been using that around her. If I talk about him, that’s what I say.” He ignored the pleased chuff he heard from the daddy himself hovering just behind him. “And I’ve settled on ‘Mama’ for myself. It came naturally to her even before I decided that’s what I would say. I’ve used it a few times, my friends use it a lot. It works.” 

To prove his point, Mariana wiggled in Derek’s grasp and reached down for Stiles. “Mamamama,” she said. A wave of sadness came over Stiles. He thought about how his mother wasn’t here to see him take care of his own little baby. He hoped she would be proud of him. 

“Come here, little wolfie,” Stiles said. He took her from Derek and she buried her face in his chest, scenting him in an attempt to calm them both down. 

“She’s going to be hungry here soon,” he added to Derek. “Where can I go feed her? Somewhere comfortable.” 

Derek shook his head. “You can do that here.” He gave Stiles a firm, challenging look. “You’re comfortable right now. And everyone else can leave if they have a problem with it. You’re clearly tired, you should just stay put.” 

Stiles wasn’t sure if that was the best approach. He didn’t want more comments from Jackson. But he did appreciate Derek’s conviction that his priority of feeding their baby should come first. “Okay, I might. Or I might go someplace else. Thanks.” He smiled at him and felt a cool rush of familiarity for the guy who used to always be around to put him first no matter what was happening. He missed that guy. His Derek. 

Derek brushed his fingers carefully through Stiles’ hair and then down his neck. He wanted so badly to wrap him up in his arms and kiss him for hours. He had always been a softie when he was dating someone. But once he started things up with Stiles, he was a major softie with zero chance of being able to treat Stiles with less than gentle touches. Unless, of course they were having rough, hungry sex. “Do whatever is best for you.” 

The baby complained loudly and smacked her uncoordinated hands on Stiles’ chest. “Mama!” She whined, near tears and her eyes glowing purple. 

“Okay, yeah, she’s hungry,” Stiles mumbled. “And as much as it means to me that you don’t think I should move, I don’t think anyone else really needs to see me shirtless anytime soon.” 

Derek moved aside for Stiles and then started following him towards the stairs. But stiles stopped him and gave him a pointed look. “What?” Derek asked, mirroring Stiles’ confused stance. 

“You’re not following me. I can do this alone.” Stiles adjusted Mariana in his arms and turned away from Derek. 

Their intelligent, impatient, magical, baby girl protested immediately. “No!” she yelled, grabbing for Derek. She couldn’t reach that far but she did cause a cold chill to sweep down over the room. A houseplant frosted over. And several small objects rose a few inches in the air. 

“ _Mariana_ ,” Stiles scolded, trying not to be too harsh. She didn’t know her magic yet. She couldn’t control it. And he couldn’t chastise her for being a baby with tantrums just like any other. “Come back to me. Look at me, Sweetheart.” 

It took a few moments of Mariana’s soft sobs before she peeled her eyes off of Derek and back to Stiles. She let her mouth drop open and she gave another long whine, quieter this time. But the room went back up to temperature, the plant dripped melted frost, and the objects clattered back down to earth. 

“Good girl. Thank you,” Stiles praised. “Sorry, you guys. She’s still learning. She’s very powerful and not very focused.” 

“Runs in the family,” Erica muttered but hushed up at a sidelong glance from Lydia. 

Derek pressed closer to Stiles again and Mar gripped his shirtsleeve in her tiny hand. “Let me come with you. If just for her.” 

Stiles conceded and rolled his eyes. “Nothing quite like a Hale, huh? Not satisfied until they get their way,” he said in resigned exasperation. Mariana and Derek were undoubtedly related. 

“Runs in the family,” Derek shrugged, echoing Erica’s sentiments as the three of them headed upstairs to the master bedroom where most of Derek’s bags remained. 

Stiles gave Mariana to Derek and pulled off his shirt. Derek’s eyes went to the scar again and he wondered if that’s why Stiles didn’t want to feed her in front of everyone. He wanted to try healing the pain away. 

When Stiles tried to take the baby back, she whimpered and burrowed into Derek’s chest. “Baby, I need to feed you. I know you’re hungry. He’s staying with us. He will be right next to you.” 

“I have an idea,” Derek said bluntly, squaring his shoulders back, preparing for a rejection from Stiles. “For her to have us both right now.” 

Derek sat on the bed, propped up on the pillows, and waited. Stiles got the idea but he wasn’t pleased about it. However, Mar was in a mood and he couldn’t afford another outburst. So, he settled into position, nested in between Derek’s legs. He rested back against Derek’s chest. Something inside him sighed. He glanced up at Derek and saw how that longing reflected in his eyes too. 

“This better work,” Stiles threatened as he brought Mariana to him and she latched on to eat. 

Her eyes were wide as she stared up at the pair of them. Stiles cradled her safely. And Derek slowly slipped his arms underneath Stiles’ own. Mar seemed to relax even more then. Her gaze flitted between them a few times before she shut her eyes peacefully. 

“You’re a good mama,” Derek whispered into Stiles’ ear. “She loves you. And I’m so grateful to you for having her. You both are incredible. Miracles, maybe.” 

“Maybe?” Stiles snorted. “I am miraculous and you know that. Don’t tease me with it.” 

“Miracle Mama,” Derek agreed. He placed a light kiss to Stiles’ neck, practically purring with happiness as he did. 

“Miracle Mariana,” Stiles added. He let his own eyes fall shut. Because touch from Derek felt so good. And having an alpha, his apparent mate, and the father of his baby holding them both while he nursed her was one of the single most soothing feelings he had ever experienced. 

There was a noise downstairs and Mariana snapped her eyes open. She looked up at her parents for confirmation that it was nothing to worry about. “It’s okay,” Derek promised. “Daddy’s got you both. You’re safe. I’m right here.” 

She already trusted Derek so much, even having just met him. But she knew him. She was part of him and he was part of her. It was her daddy and her daddy was strong and protective and loving. She wasn’t afraid was he was around. 

“Really leaning into the Alpha Dad thing, aren’t you?” Stiles asked. Not that he minded. He wanted Mar to have him around. And if he was protective of her, that was all the better. 

“Well, I’m here now. I can be her father and her alpha.” Derek took in a deep breath, feeling how the house welcomed in a new budding troop of Hales. 

Stiles took Derek out of his moment when he let out a strangled noise and said, “There’s a small problem there, though, Buddy. She was born into a different pack. She already has an alpha. Alpha Laredo in Nevada. She and her pack are the ones who took us in.” 

Derek growled immediately, grip tightening on his family like he thought they would be snatched right from in front of him. “But I’m her dad. I’m her alpha. You gave her the Hale name.” 

“Yeah, because I thought she deserved it. And I thought your family deserved it.” Stiles had a million reasons for giving her the name. But the most important to him was that he respected and cared about the Hales, including all the ones he never met. And he wanted them to be able to claim Mariana as their own. She should be part of her family in that way. But it wasn’t for Derek. Not really. Or, it was. But he was a low priority at the time. Stiles was so angry at him. And it mattered less to him that Derek would get to flaunt his child’s name. “I haven’t decided about you yet.” 

“Stiles, I-” Derek got cut off. 

“No, let’s not do this right now,” Stiles countered. “She’s still eating. But she’s getting tired. We can talk about alphas and packs and claims and all that shit later. Right now, let her eat and rest.” 

Derek nodded, understanding Stiles’ concern for their little girl and her need for sleep. “Okay, later then.” 

“Thank you.” Stiles watched Mariana for a little longer. Then his own eyes drooped and he started to fall asleep. And before he knew it, he and the baby were both passed out together on Derek. 

Derek shuddered at the feeling. His mate and his baby trusted him so much to keep them safe that they would fall asleep on him while they were vulnerable. He couldn’t help but feel like he was doing his job right. He was being a good dad, a good mate, and good alpha. 

He listened to the whistled inhale and exhale of Stiles’ breathing. He was out. 

Derek took this opportunity to press his hands over the scar on Stiles’ abdomen. He felt the ache and the pain under the surface and pulled it away slowly and carefully. His arms were striped with black veins and he sighed in relief that he could do this for Stiles. It was the least he could do, really. “I love you both so much” he whispered quiet as possible so as not wake them up. 

\--- 

The next morning, Stiles woke up to the doorbell ringing and the sounds of his father shuffling to answer it. He blinked awake and checked that Mariana was still sleeping soundly in her crib. He hastily pulled on a sweater and pajama pants – he had been too hot in the night and ended up in his underwear. 

When he got downstairs, he saw three familiar faces curiously looking around his living room while his dad asked if anyone wanted anything for breakfast. “Oh, good, my son. He can take care of this. My omelet is cooking and I don’t much want it to burn.” He was decidedly annoyed about yet another unannounced addition to the guests in his house. 

Stiles waved his dad off and sighed. “What are you guys doing here?” he asked, shoving his hands in his pockets and cocking his head to the side. Three members of his Nevada pack were standing in his living room looking entirely justified to be there. 

“We were worried,” Solene, the alpha, said flatly. She was truly concerned and Stiles could tell. But her crossed arms and perfectly balanced stance suggested she was frustrated with him for not talking to her before he left. 

Stiles glanced between the three of them and asked, “So, you all had to come here. Couldn’t try a phone call? Isn’t your land at risk right now?” 

Solene shrugged. “Constance and Tristan are still there. They’re guarding it.” 

“What? You left those two in charge?” Stiles asked incredulously. “They’re not ready. You shouldn’t be here – away from your territory.” 

“We had to come make sure everything was alright. Vieva was the only one who knew where you went.” She gestured to the pack emissary who Stiles had given his dad’s address to just in case of an emergency. “And it’s my call and I think Constance and Tristan can handle it for a couple days.” 

Stiles softened up hugged Solene, letting her nuzzle into his neck to scent him. “I’m alright. I promise. So is Mariana.” 

Solene crinkled her nose as she pulled back. “You smell too much like that other alpha.” She knew Derek’s scent because of Mariana. Which she didn’t mind on the baby. But such a raw layer of Derek all over Stiles was off-putting and aggravating to her pack sensibilities. “Is he here? In town? I didn’t know he was going to be here.” 

“Trust me, I didn’t know either.” Stiles rolled his eyes and chuckled as Vieva latched herself onto him in a hug next. “Hi, yep, missed you too,” he muttered. 

He was genuinely pleased to see them. But it was a little inconvenient. He didn’t want to include his new pack in this squabble involving his old pack. It just seemed easier to keep them separate. But he should have guessed they weren’t going to stand for that. 

When Vieva let go, Stiles turned to Avery. He was a beta, Solene’s brother, and Stiles’ biggest protector. Stiles was pretty sure Avery was in love with him. But they hadn’t discussed anything like that before. “Are you mad at me?” he asked gently, looking up at Avery and touching his arm. “Come on. You know I didn’t tell you where we were going for a reason.” 

Avery nodded slowly and finally grabbed Stiles to pull him in close. He wrapped his arms around him and held tightly. “I don’t get the reason though. We woke up and you and Mariana were missing.” 

“We weren’t missing. Vieva knew exactly where we would be. And looks like she told you guys without much trouble, right?” Stiles rested his head on Avery’s shoulder. He did miss his new pack. They had gotten close in the time since they found Stiles wandering around a grocery store crying because there wasn’t any Captain Crunch’s Oops All Berries. “And the reason I didn’t tell anyone else was because I didn’t want you to come here just like this. This isn’t your fight. I don’t want any of you getting involved and getting hurt. I don’t want the complication of having my old pack meet my new one. And this isn’t Laredo land. It’s Hale-McCall territory and I don’t want goddamn stupid werewolf claiming fights or whatever.” 

Derek tromped down the stairs then, much noisier than usual in his hast to get to Stiles. “Stiles!” he gasped sharply but stopped short when he realized this must be the pack Stiles had been staying with in Nevada. “I got out of the shower and heard voices.” He was wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair was wet, plastered to his head, and his eyes were red. 

“I can see that,” Stiles mused and let go of Avery, but he didn’t move away from the pack. “Derek, this is Alpha Laredo. Solene, Alpha Hale. Kind of would have preferred this meeting to happen with everyone fully dressed, but okay.” 

Solene nodded and took a step out in front of her pack. “Good to meet you, Hale. I’ve heard a lot about your family and your land. My aunt once worked with your mother on a peace accord with witches in Arizona.” 

Stiles moved on before Derek could answer. “This is Vieva – pack emissary, druid, doctor. And this is Avery – Solene’s younger brother, beta.” 

Avery gripped Stiles’ arm and flashed his eyes at Derek. It was far too hostile a greeting for the alpha’s liking. He returned with a snarl. “Get your hands off of him.” 

“Calm down,” Stiles snapped at Derek and wrenched his arm from Avery’s grip. “You too. Shit.” 

“He can’t touch you like that,” Derek countered quickly, taking several steps closer to Stiles to reach for him. 

“I’m protecting him,” Avery stepped up too, not touching Stiles but creating a tense barrier in case he needed to attack. 

Derek sized him up. “From who? I’ve known him much longer than you have. He was my pack before he was yours.” 

“Yes, from you! You’re dangerous.” Avery touched Stiles’ arm then, gentler than before. He and his pack had been protecting Stiles and his baby since before she was born. Derek wasn’t an exception. He was part of the problem, as far as Avery was concerned. 

Derek scoffed, touching Stiles too. Making him a link between the two angry wolves. “He’s my mate.” He didn’t need some beta trying to protect his mate from him. 

“You abandoned him!” Avery shouted, eyes glowing, fangs down, body shaking. He was ready to lunge right at Derek if he needed to. 

“Avery, stop. Derek-” Stiles gasped in pain as a jolt of power went through him. Avery and Derek were both knocked back several feet. A gush of cold air descended on the room. “Fuck. Ah…” Stiles held his stomach and grimaced, but he stepped back away from them all as they tried to help. 

“Stiles, no magic,” Derek reminded worriedly. “Are you okay? You’re hurt.” 

“It just happened. I didn’t have control.” Stiles didn’t mean to let his magic take over like it did but lately he was having bad luck in controlling it when he was upset. He was about to tell them he was fine and they needed to leave him alone. But then the lights in the house dimmed and he heard Mariana’s scared little shriek. 

“Mama! _Mama_!” She cried desperately. She could feel that Stiles was hurting and she wanted to get to him. 

Stiles started for the stairs immediately, saying, “Great! You two jackasses woke the baby.” He crashed into the bedroom and hurriedly picked Mariana up and held her to his chest. “It’s alright, sweet girl, I’m right here. I’m okay.” As Mariana settled herself against Stiles, scenting him and finding a cozy place to rest, the others all filed into his room. 

“Woah, lots of Stiles smells in here,” Avery hummed. He and Solene moved around his room, following the strongest traces of Stiles’ scent and picking things up to examine them better. 

Vieva busied herself rifling through the stuff on Stiles’ desk. Gathering information in her own way. “You’ve got a concealment charm on this drawer so people don’t think to open it,” she said, tugging the drawer and finding it wouldn’t give. “Definitely something in there you don’t want anyone to see.” 

Stiles huffed in annoyance. “Yes, good point. So, don’t try to get in there, please. And you two don’t have to smell everything. You know my scent.” 

Derek pressed up behind Stiles. He molded to his back for support. He also sneaked a hand carefully up Stiles’ shirt and placed it on his tummy. If he was slow with it, he thought he could take some of Stiles’ pain without him noticing. That involuntary burst of magic did a number on him. “Stiles, do you want me to stop them?” he whispered, not caring that they would hear. 

“No, this is important to them. It’s fine,” Stiles answered. “Besides, you’re only in a towel and I don’t want that falling off. My pack doesn’t need to see what _you’re_ packing.” 

Vieva chuckled but Avery let out a short grunt of a growl. He didn’t like that. He didn’t like knowing that Derek – the father of Stiles’ baby, the man who slept with Stiles and then left him – was hanging around practically naked. Making himself at home in Stiles’ life again. 

“Sorry, Stiles. It’s hard not to smell you in here. Obviously. Especially the mattress.” Solene touched Stiles’ unmade bed and muttered, “Sweat, blood, ejaculate, alcohol, urine.” She looked to Derek. “You.” 

“You’re forgetting he’s my mate and we spent a lot of time together. Particularly here. Particularly in his bed.” Derek held Stiles a little tighter – more possessively. 

Stiles glanced up at Derek and squinted his eyes to tell him to cool down. “There’s a good explanation for all those things in my mattress. With or without being mates. Some of those things doing involve Derek at all.” He was only trying to keep some semblance of balance so he didn’t have two alphas fighting over him for pack placement or anything else. “Never drank alcohol with Derek. Just alone. And I was coming in that bed long before I knew you.” 

“The blood?” Avery asked, concern blooming over his face. 

Stiles shrugged. “Not sure. Multiple occasions I’m guessing. Could have even been just a paper cut.” Except that he knew he had left some heavy puddles of blood on occasion. 

“And the urine?” Solene asked, offhandedly, strictly curious. 

The room was quiet for a second as Stiles wondered how best to explain the effects of the Nogitsune on him. It did a lot – physically, emotionally, mentally. It fucked him up so badly for so long and still did, if not as much. “Nightmares.” He said simply. He hoped that was enough of an explanation for them and they wouldn’t ask anything more about it. He was embarrassed about all the times he felt paralyzed in his bed and would wake up having peed himself in the night. Derek, Lydia, and his dad were the only ones who knew about that. He’d hoped to keep it that way. 


	3. Chapter 3

“He’s in love with you,” Derek said flatly. He watched as Stiles changed Mariana’s diaper. He had offered to help but Stiles just snapped that he had it under control. He hadn’t been in a great mood since his new pack left the house to go get some food. 

Stiles had asked them to give him an hour or so to decide what to do. His best idea so far was to take them to the pack house. They weren’t going to go back to Nevada without him. And he couldn’t accommodate them here.

Mariana wiggled impatiently and Stiles gently held her leg steady so he could finish up. But after he got her squared away, he had to focus back on Derek and the words he was saying. He was talking about  Avery . And Stiles wasn’t going to try to deny it. 

“I know.” He sighed quietly, deflating a little as he looked up at Derek. Into his beautiful, earthy green eyes that his baby girl inherited.

“Does he know you know?”

“I think so.”

Derek picked an outfit for his daughter and helped guide her feet into the pantlegs one after the other. “Stiles, that’s not good.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Stiles asked. 

“Does he know I’m your mate?” Derek was pressing now. He needed to know everything about this young beta who was in love with the mother of his child. 

Stiles rolled his eyes. “Well, you told him earlier, didn’t you? While you two were having a pissing contest and woke up Mariana.” Sometimes Stiles got so sick of werewolf possession bullshit. “Yeah, they all know. At least, they know what I know. Which isn’t much. Because you told me that I am your mate. But then you left. So, I started to wonder if you were just fucking with me.”

“No, Stiles, I wasn’t just fucking with you. You’re-” Derek got cut off. 

“I don’t want to talk about that right now.”

“Okay, then let’s talk about Avery.” Derek followed Stiles back downstairs to the kitchen. “Did you sleep with him?”

Stiles whipped around to stare at Derek in shock. “What? No! Oh, my god. Why would you ask that?” The insinuation alone was insulting. Stiles was never the type of person to just sleep around. And he was certainly not the type to fuck someone who was in love with him, knowing full well he didn’t share the sentiment. 

That aside, he had been hung up on Derek this entire time – despite desperately trying not to be. And he had just had a baby. When was he supposed to have had any sex with anyone? While he was pregnant with another man’s child? When he was in recovery from having surgery? Or while he was running around all day with a little werewolf Hale baby with seemingly endless energy that she inherited from Stiles. 

“Because he loves you! And you were in Nevada with him. And you weren’t with me. So, yeah. I have to ask, Stiles.” Derek tried to keep his voice quiet so as not to startle Mariana. But it was sharp and harsh and that was hard to control. He was angry at the thought of someone else looking at Stiles in that way. Not to mention being in love with him. Derek’s eyes flashed red and his whole body shivered thinking about somebody getting to have sex with Stiles, his mate.

Stiles threw his hands in the air in defeat and shrugged. “I don’t know what to tell you, Der. I didn’t sleep with him. I didn’t kiss him. I know his feelings. He knows mine.”

Derek bristled over this whole relationship. Avery loved Stiles. And Derek completely understood. He couldn’t even blame him. Not really. Stiles was everything anyone could ever want. He was funny and entertaining even when he was being absolutely ridiculous. He was far more intelligent than people gave him credit for but he never boasted about it. He was adorable no matter what he was doing – even when he was annoying Derek to no end. He was handsome and sexy just as he was. And he was caring and loving sometimes to a fault given with how self-sacrificial he was. Stiles was everything. He was everything to Derek.

“Okay, but did you want to?” Derek asked, pressing into Stiles’ space more and catching his eye. “Sleep with him, I mean. Did you want to? Even if you didn’t do it?”

Mariana gave a grumpy whine and gripped on to Stiles’ tightly. “Mama.” She flashed her eyes at him and whimpered again.

Stiles took a deep, slow breath and kissed her forehead. “She can feel how stressed out this conversation is making me, Derek,” he said. Derek did not indicate that they could drop this. “Fine. Fine. I don’t know what I wanted. Okay? He was offering physical touch and emotional connection that I haven’t had in a long time. And, yes, I thought about it a few times. I’ve been so lonely and I missed you so much. And I hated having to learn to live without that stuff – you all over me, kissing me, holding me, fucking me. So, yes, I considered it. But I never wanted him. I mean, it’s my own damn bad luck that I’ve only ever wanted you since I met you. It sucks. I could’ve been with some pretty great people who seemed to be really into me. But... It’s been all about Derek Hale for years, hasn’t it?”

Derek watched Stiles’ face droop more and more. He looked so unbelievably sad. Stiles was at the end of his rope. And Derek was getting the feeling that he had been there for a long time now. 

Mariana buried her face in Stiles’ neck and did her best to comfort him. It was at once precious beyond words and also more disheartening than it should have been. She was very in tune with Stiles. And she was clearly used to this sort of feeling coming from him.

“Listen, Stiles...” Derek started, unsure if he should say anything or let him have a moment. “I’m sorry I asked. That was a dick move. A possessive, dumb, alpha move. This isn’t an excuse; I just love you so much. And I need you and I want you. Both of you. And I really am sorry for not being around with-”

“Stop! God, stop...” Stiles shushed him quickly. “I don’t want to hear it, dude. I can’t do this. I don’t want to deal with this right now. Or hear how you apparently love me so much but you weren’t there for me when I needed it the most. I can’t do that right now. It just hurts way too much.”

This Stiles felt different. He was avoiding any and all problems like he was afraid of the fight. And that was never how he was before. Derek would be happier if Stiles yelled at him for hours about what a shitty person he was. This defeatist version of Stiles just screamed of how lost he was inside. 

“Stiles, we’ll have to talk about it sometime. Because I love you and I’m sorry. And I want to be with you and Mariana - however I can make that happen. But that has to start with us having the conversation.” Derek paused for a moment and chuckled. “And this is me saying this, Stiles. Me! How many times have I refused to talk about something until you made me? I learned all this from you.”

“Big dummy I am for teaching you that,” Stiles agreed under his breath. “We can talk about it later. Not right now.”

Derek nodded. “Not right now.” He touched Stiles’ shoulder and ran his hand down his arm. He wanted to hold him so badly. “What are we doing now then?”

Stiles ignored how his body shuddered at the feeling of being touched by Derek. He went on, “We have to figure out what to do with my pack. They aren’t going back to Nevada. They can help Scott too. But I can’t have them staying here. We don’t have room, and I can’t impose on my dad.”

“Should we take them to the Hale House?” Derek asked. He wasn’t happy about the idea of a foreign pack being dropped into his house, especially when one member was in love with his mate. But he knew it was the best and only option and it would make Stiles happy. Because he was right, they couldn’t stay in the sheriff's space.

“Yeah, if you don’t mind.” Stiles knew the implications. And knew it was asking a lot of the Hale-McCall pack. But the Hale House wasn’t Scott’s. He couldn’t argue against Stiles’ pack being around.

Derek nodded again. “It’s the best idea. I’ll call Cora to let her know. You go pack your things.”

“Me? Why am I packing?” Stiles asked as he handed Mariana off to Derek. He held up a thick teething toy for her. “Don’t let her sink her fangs into this.”

Derek took the toy and let Mariana shove it into her mouth happily. She did like to bite and munch on whatever she could get her teeth on. “You’re coming to stay at the house, Stiles,” Derek said, matter-of-factly like it was obvious.

“No, no, no.” Stiles just laughed. “No way. I’ll come over there for meetings. But I’m staying here with my dad. Mar and I are staying here. You can feel free to go there, though.”

“No, Stiles. I can’t protect you if I’m over there. That’s why I came here in the first place. But I have to protect my home and Cora and everyone there as well. But especially you and Mariana You’re going over there.”

“I told you before, Hale’s belong in the Hale House.”

“You’re a Hale!” Derek said stubbornly, upset that Stiles insisted he wasn’t part of the family. “You’re my mate, that makes you a Hale. And Mariana is my blood. Hale.”

The baby  hummed, the toy firmly stuck in her fangs. “Derek, I said don’t let her use fangs.” Stiles made Mariana release the toy. “I also said I don’t want to go stay there.”

“Because of Scott?” Derek asked. 

“No. I don’t know. Lots of reasons.” Sure, Scott was one. Being here with his dad was another. Having to be stuck with everyone else all the time. Feeling responsible for taking care of every soul in the house. Enduring annoying comments or questions while he was trying to feed his baby or change her diaper. It was just a lot to be there. 

“Please, Stiles. I need to be there. It’s safer there anyway. You belong there. More than Scott and everyone else. And Mariana deserves to be in the Hale House with the family looking out for her. She’s been in the Stilinski house. It’s only fair.” Derek kept up his pleading even as Mar turned to snuggle against him and close her eyes. “I’ll keep you safe. I’ll snap at anyone who annoys you. I’ll bring you food whenever you need it. You can just hide out in my bedroom if that’s what you prefer. Anything you want. Just please go pack your stuff. And come with me.”

\---

“Nobody said anything about you sleeping in here with us,” Stiles complained as Derek set up a makeshift bed of blankets on the ground.

“It’s my room, Stiles. And I want to be here to protect you, just in case.” Derek grabbed his pillow and fluffed it before laying down. And it made sense to him that he should stay with Stiles and their daughter. This was his family.

Stiles flopped back on the king bed, knowing already it was too big for him to be comfortable in. “Protect us from what? We came to the Hale House because you said it was safer. I think Mariana and I are just fine on our own.” He looked over at the crib where his little girl was already sleeping soundly. She responded well to the house and all the smells of Derek.

“I don’t know. Anything. Anyone. I don't care. I just don’t feel comfortable being away from you. You know I get worried.” Derek didn’t mind admitting that to Stiles. It wasn’t a big surprise.

“I still think we’re fine in here alone,” Stiles said and flicked out the light.

Derek rolled to his side. The bed of blankets on the floor wasn’t terribly comfortable. But it was better than nothing. “Get some sleep, Stiles. Please.”

The room got quiet. Warm blankets coupled with the gentle sounds of Mariana and Stiles’ heartbeats helped lull Derek into sleep. But it didn’t last long. He jolted awake at the sound of a sharp, nervous grunt from Stiles. 

Derek got to his feet quickly and hovered next to the bed. Stiles was asleep but twitching slightly. He let out another chorus of quiet, agitated whimpers. He gestured like he was trying to do magic in his sleep. Derek wondered if he wasn’t warding something off in his dreams. Not dreams, nightmares. They had never really gone away. 

“Stiles...” Derek whispered softly. “I know your dream seems real but it isn’t.” He placed a careful hand on Stiles’ shoulder. “You aren’t there. Wake up.” It was a fine line between waking him out of a nightmare or startling him out of it so badly it turned into a panic attack. “Wake up, Baby...”

Derek squeezed his shoulder as lightly as he could. It took a few more seconds before Stiles realized Derek was touching him. But he came back with a little gasp and slowly sat up holding his head. “What? What is it? Is Mariana okay?” he asked immediately.

“She’s okay. She’s asleep.” Derek assured him. “You were having a nightmare. Do you remember?” His hands were on either side of Stiles’ face in an instant. He scooted closer and gave Stiles a body to lean on. 

“Of course, I remember,” Stiles snapped quietly as the scenes and images of the nightmare came back to him in a rush. “Fuck…” He was crying and he was sweaty. It was a common response to nightmares. This one wasn’t even a bad one. But he always felt terrible after they were over.

He covered his face in his hands and fell forward into Derek. Derek didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around Stiles and hold him close and safe - one hand on the back of Stiles’ head. The room was silent except for the frantic gasps Stiles made.

“You’re safe, Baby. I’m here,” Derek rambled and kept his arms around him. He hadn’t gotten to do this in so long. Holding Stiles. Comforting him. Breathing him in. His normal scent awash in fear and stress, anger and disappointment. 

They could only stay like that for a minute. Mariana woke up. “Mama...” she whined and reached out for Stiles, her tiny, pudgy hand sticking out between the bars of the crib. “Mama.” 

Stiles wiped his face off on his shirt, leaving tear spots and snot on the sleeve. Wordlessly, he got up and plucked the baby from her crib. “It’s okay, Mariana. I’m alright,” he said sadly. He adjusted back on Derek again, using his chest as a wall to lean on. “She doesn’t like it when I get nightmares. She doesn’t know how to help.”

Derek  was so proud that she was this attentive to Stiles and Stiles to her. “Does holding her help?” he whispered low in Stiles’ ear.

“It usually does. It’s good to know that she cares and wants to help me. But sometimes I’m so exhausted that I just wait until she’s asleep and cry quieter.” Stiles knew how sad that sounded but it was the truth. A lot had changed for him and part of that was he got upset more often than he before. He was less goofy and opinionated. He tried to go the path of least resistance. Or placate someone instead of rile them up. He wasn’t sure if it was him maturing or just... giving up.

“Maybe that’s how she helps. She’s distracting you from yourself so you have to pay attention to her instead of what’s in your head.” Derek kissed Stiles’ neck. “That’s classic Stilinski. How many times did you distract or annoy me just so I wouldn’t be so worried or angry? That’s all you, Stiles.” He kissed him again, on his shoulder. 

Mariana drifted off, confident that everything was okay now. Stiles held her close and watched her. He loved her so much. “You might be right about that. That is... a very Stilinski way to do things.”

“I love you, Stiles,” Derek breathed softly, his nose tucked into the crook of Stiles’ neck, whispering on his skin. “I love Mariana. I love that we have a family. And you’re here in this house.” He could sit here and hold his mate and his baby forever. Derek realized more and more how monumentally idiotic it was for him to walk away from Stiles for that long. He should have known after a day, an hour, that he needed him like air. 

Stiles took in a slow breath and shook himself out of Derek’s embrace. “Hey...” he warned without much heat. “You can’t do that. I get that you want to. But not right now.” It felt so nice. But it was overwhelming. And he wasn’t with Derek right now. Not romantically. He wasn’t with anyone - for good reasons. “I’m sorry.” He laid Mariana in her crib and wiggled back into bed. 

Derek got the message. He needed to reign it in. “I’m sorry. You're right.” As he got up to return to his bed of blankets, Stiles’ hand shot out to grab him. 

“No.” His voice was quiet but Stiles looked up at him intensely. “Just stay here. I don’t know how well I’ll sleep now that I had a bad nightmare. At least share this giant ass bed with me.”

“Sure, Stiles. I’ll stay.” Derek could hardly contain himself as he slipped under the covers and slotted himself behind Stiles. This was a huge step for them. Stiles trusted him enough to share a bed and counted on Derek to help if he had any more restless sleep. Derek vowed not to fuck this up. “I’m not going anywhere.”

\---

The next morning found Stiles waking up completely wrapped in Derek. Their legs were tangled together and Derek’s arms held protectively around Stiles’ chest. It was comfortable and familiar. Stiles remembered those months getting to wake up just like this. Right now, he could almost forget that anything ever changed between them.

Derek stirred when he realized Stiles was awake. He squeezed him a little tighter. “Morning,” he mumbled with a quirk of a smile that only Stiles could get out of him in the morning. “Did you sleep better?”

“Yeah, I did. Better than the first attempt.” Stiles extricated himself from Derek carefully. He rolled onto his back and rubbed his chest with a grimace. 

Derek propped up on his elbow, watching Stiles. “You’re in pain. What’s wrong?”

Stiles shook his head. “I’m fine. Sometimes my chest is just tight.” Dispensing of any lingering embarrassment of Derek seeing his surgery scar and stretch marks again, he pulled his shirt up and continued to massage from his collar bone down past his nipples. 

Finally understanding what was wrong, Derek’s eyes flashed red and he quickly covered Stiles’ fist. “Let me help?” he begged more than asked. His instincts as an alpha and as Stiles’ mate clawed and scratched at the surface. Derek and his wolf wanted to, needed to, care for their mate and the mother of their child, especially like this.

Opening one eye, Stiles scanned Derek’s face to decipher what he was thinking here. Ultimately, though, Stiles shut his eyes again and sighed, “Yeah, go ahead. Thanks...”

Derek was on him with urgency. Deft fingers walked the familiar plane of Stiles’ chest, brushing over that patch of dark hair in the dip of his sternum. “You’re gorgeous, Baby...” Derek muttered, betraying the illusion of a gruff, dour alpha with unshakeable conviction. However, in the presence of the man he loved, Derek couldn’t help but come undone. Stiles was his breaking point. Even when they weren’t friends yet, no one could get under his skin better than Stiles. Over time, he found new and endless methods to cut through to Derek in good ways and bad.

“That’s not necessary,” Stiles reprimanded fondly. “Stick to the task at hand.” 

If only Stiles would stop using that beautiful mouth. Every word he said had Derek falling further under his accidental spell. “Stiles... fuck...” Derek whispered, finally kneading his hands over his chest. “You don’t know what you do to me.”

The moan of relief that left Stiles’ lips undercut his mumbled sentiment of, “I think I get the idea, Der.” Stiles was grateful that he was able to feed Mariana himself, but sometimes he was just sore no matter what he did. But, damn, if Derek’s well-practiced touch wasn’t the best solution so far.

Derek froze when he saw a wet line of milk glide down from his nipple. His mouth dropped open at a glacial pace and he looked up at Stiles with heavy-lidded eyes. Stiles, as always, was the most attractive thing Derek had ever laid eyes on - warm beneath his touch, soft and hard at the same time - and now, smelling like deep forest roots and the sweetest fruit and the freshest dew after heavy rain. Derek was intoxicated.

“Yeah, that happens,” Stiles said. “Hey, even regular human dudes can technically produce breast milk. It’s rare, look it up. A man could breastfeed, kind of. It’s science. I swear.”

“It’s not that.” Derek’s voice was strained. He hoped Stiles could see how affected he was by this. His eyes went red and his fangs came down. Claws sprouted from his nails and he removed his hands to the pillow. 

Stiles whimpered at the loss. “Hey, that was helping.” He breathed deeply, causing his chest to rise and fall, the beads of milk flowing  again. 

“Hold on. Let me try-” Derek trailed his tongue up from Stiles’ ribs, chasing a runaway drop of milk. If he wasn’t handling this well before, it was much worse then. Darting his tongue out again, he licked over Stiles’ left nipple and then his right.

“Jesus, fuck,” Stiles gripped the back of Derek’s hair. It was surprising, to say the least.  But, he didn’t tell Derek to stop. The sensation was something Stiles couldn’t resist. 

Derek licked Stiles’ chest. They had been here before, doing this same thing. Derek used to be addicted to tasting his way all over Stiles’ body – still was. The difference now, in the way Stiles tasted, was thanks to the free-flowing, warm breast milk that threatened Derek’s resolve and control. “Stiles.” He growled his name like a curse. 

“D-Derek, shit...” Stiles wasn’t much better with one hand on the back of Derek’s head and the other flung over his face to cover his flustered look of desire.

“You taste so good.” Derek lapped his tongue again and stopped to hover just over his nipple. If his milk tasted that good as it spilled from him, it only stood to reason that it would be so much better if he took it from the source. Careful not to cut his teeth into Stiles’ skin, Derek sucked hard on Stiles’ nipple, like he used to back before there was anything to gain from it.

Just like then, too, Stiles muffled a yelp and arched his back off the bed. “Fuck, fuck, Derek.” His chest was so much more sensitive, and just a moment of Derek’s mouth and his tongue and stubble had Stiles’ dick hard in his pajamas and wanting.

Derek noticed the change in Stiles’ arousal at once. Spurred on by this new development, and the heaviness of his own erection, he alternated to the other side and licked and swallowed more of Stiles’ milk. 

But it didn’t last much longer. Stiles gently pushed at Derek’s shoulder with a warm but firm, “Okay, Derek, Baby, enough.” He wasn’t opposed to how their bodies reacted. Hell, he was used to that with Derek, after all. Except that this was not the time. And they couldn’t do this, no matter how much he wanted to and how good it felt. 

Obediently, Derek pulled away, leaving a final lick in his wake. “I’m stopping. I’m done.” No surprise that he wished he didn’t have to stop. “I want you. You want me.” But he understood what Stiles was thinking and why. 

“I know, Derek. But, enough.” Stiles had only needed to ease the soreness in his chest. It didn’t need to go that far. Although, he wasn’t complaining that it had.

Derek nodded solemnly and rolled onto his back again, removing the temptation to rest his head on Stiles’ chest.

Trying to brush off what happened and change the subject, Stiles cleared his throat. “I guess I should have checked yesterday, but the house does have food, right? Because I’m already hungry and there are more people to feed now.”

“Yes, the house has food.” Derek assured him. “Cora and Isaac went out yesterday and got supplies.”

“Good. Everyone will to eat breakfast. We should make sure to introduce the new additions. Then we can get started and get this over with so everyone can go home.” Stiles yawned and ambled over to the crib where Mariana was still fast asleep. 

Derek noticed how Stiles slipped right back into his tendency to take care of everybody around him. Too many times had Stiles gone above and beyond for people who hardly returned the favor with even a thank you. “Stiles, how about you just relax a second. You aren’t here so you can cook for hungry wolves and make introductions. Your role here is more than that. And I think it's time that some of those responsibilities get shared around instead of dropped in your lap.”

“It’s fine. I know if I don’t do it, no one will. And then people will complain and eat something shitty for breakfast. And then where will we be? And I don’t want to give them that Pop-Tarts talk again.” 

“Okay. Then let me do it.” Derek knew Stiles was a very good cook. He had to learn after his mother passed away. He and his dad ate a lot of take-out for a year or so until he opened up one of her recipe books and figured it all out. But that didn’t mean he had to do it all the time and for grown-ass adults. “I can make scrambled eggs with steamed vegetables and sausage. And we can have oatmeal as an option. With fruit and granola. Healthy stuff. We have healthy stuff, Stiles. I can put together breakfast.”

Stiles turned to look at him. This was a new Derek. The Derek he was used to would have told everyone to just eat what they wanted and not to bother Stiles to make them an omelet. This Derek was willing to take on the challenge of breakfast for this many people because otherwise Stiles would do it himself. And he knew it was important to Stiles that they have something substantial to eat. 

“Fine. You can help me make breakfast. I won’t make you do it alone.” Stiles gave one last look to Mariana and then walked away cautiously. “She’s still sleeping. Back home I have a baby monitor set up on my phone so I can watch her. I don’t want to take her downstairs if she wants to rest. Do you think she’s safe up here?”

“She’s safe up here. And I’ll hear her when she wakes up. She’s okay. I promise.” Derek squeezed Stiles’ shoulder and tugged him gently away. “Let’s go. Let her sleep. Let me impress you with my scrambled egg skills.”

\---

Avery sat at the table watching them as they came in. “Morning, Stiles,” he said first with a smile. “I’m the first one up, I think.”

Stiles gently pushed Derek’s arm off of him and Derek only then realized he had been clutching his waist. Avery may not be dangerous to Stiles but he was still a threat to Derek. Meaning Derek wanted to protect Stiles from even a morning greeting. And he knew that was unfair. 

“We’re going to make breakfast for everyone, Avery.” Stiles gestured to the kitchen at large and jokingly added, “Alpha Hale here is going to learn how to feed his pack instead of just buying a million boxes of cereal and hoping that works. Do you want to help us cook?”

Avery popped up from his seat immediately. “Of course, I’ll help you, Stiles. What can I do?” He liked feeling useful and he liked spending time with people this way. Those sentiments were just stronger when Stiles was involved. He would help him in any way. 

Avery had been there since the moment Stiles was brought into their pack. He helped him set up his new place, helped take care of him while he was pregnant, helped deliver the baby. Most every day since Mariana was born saw  Avery paddling after Stiles to make sure he was alright. He fell in love with him quickly and deeply. 

Derek helped Stiles grab everything from the fridge and cabinets, intercepting if  Avery tried to take something from Stiles before he could. Stiles shot Derek a disappointed glare and turned to  Avery . “Start chopping vegetables so we can sauté them for omelets. Like I showed you before.”

Avery did as he was told. Taking the vegetables and a cutting board to one side of the counter. Derek sidled up next to Stiles at the stove and set to work cooking bacon and sausages. He was as close to Stiles as he could possibly be. Bumping his elbow into Derek too many times lead Stiles to quietly grouse, “Oh, my god. You can be at least five more inches away from me right now.”

“Stiles,” Derek protested, standing up a little straighter and clenching his jaw. He would never admit it, but it embarrassed him reprimanded by his mate for being too clingy while the other guy who was in love with his mate was within earshot. And Derek was pretty sure he heard Avery snort in laughter under his breath. 

“Calm down, please. I’m not going anywhere. I just need to walk around the kitchen without a literal puppy at my heels.” Stiles moved away from Derek slowly, as if he was testing Derek’s ability to stay put. In Stiles’ case, absence made the heart grow bitter. But for Derek, absence made the heart grow clingier. It was a weird spot for them to be in.

Avery watched Stiles grab a large skillet to use for the vegetables. He stepped up quickly with his hands outstretched, “Here, Stiles, I’ll get it,” he offered, but was quickly in contest with Derek.

“No, I can handle it. Stick to chopping,” Derek countered, nearly flashing his eyes at the other wolf as he took the skillet from Stiles’ grasp.

“Jesus, fuck.” Stiles snatched the skillet back and wielded it like a sword between them. “I’m an adult with an eight-month-old who weighs much more than this. I can carry a skillet to the stove. I probably won’t even burn my hand on the stovetop. Or drop the skillet on my foot. But there is a really good chance I’ll smack you both in the head with this thing if you don’t leave me alone and cut this shit out.”

Derek and Avery exchanged a glance, knowing they overstepped. Stiles was nowhere near a fragile flower they needed to take care of. They’d both experienced just how powerful Stiles could be, with or without his magic. Stiles didn’t want to be coddled and babied and have two strong werewolves carry kitchen supplies for him. He just wanted them there to help make breakfast. 

Derek understood that he should have done more. Even before he was the alpha, he should have been better for his pack and that included Stiles. He had been so ungrateful for Stiles’ help for too long. He let him be pack researcher, pack butler, pack chef, pack nurse, anything. It was his fault. He squandered Stiles. And then when he had him, he let him go because he was  afraid he wasn’t going to be good enough for Stiles. But now he wondered why he ever thought he could try. 

A voice in Derek’s head told him he was being too harsh on himself. It told him he had been good for Stiles and he might be able to make it all up to him now – to be with him and never take him for granted again. The voice told him to have a little more confidence in himself and to work harder at forgiving himself for his mistakes. And Derek knew that wasn’t him. That voice was all Stiles. A voice given to him by so many pep-talks and unquestioning support. He had always needed Stiles. And Stiles needed him.

“I’m sorry,” Derek whispered, eyes locked to his mate’s. He wasn’t sure if Stiles would get that he was apologizing for all of it, everything he had done wrong when it came to him. But he knew the excuse he was going to give Stiles for leaving him a year and a half ago would never be as important as the genuine remorse he felt for doing so. Stiles needed to know that.

There was a heavy pause over the room. Stiles’ heart ached for Derek and the bond they had together. He could feel the guilt coming off of him in waves and it made him want to cry. Guilt was never a faraway emotion when it came to Derek Hale, but Stiles had hoped he would grow out of it eventually. They did need to have that talk - as much as Stiles was trying to avoid it. They needed to talk about Derek’s departure and the pregnancy and what they were supposed to do about it all now. Fuck, that was going to suck. But they had to. “It’s okay. We can talk later,” he said carefully. “For now, just cook. This is the slowest breakfast I’ve ever made.”

Derek returned to his role as the dutiful sous-chef, frying bacon in silence. Avery waited for Stiles’ attention and then added his apology. “Me too. I’m really sorry.” Avery was perceptive enough to see that something had just transpired between Derek and Stiles. He wasn’t sure what it was. But it didn’t bode well for his interest in Stiles. But he knew he couldn’t will Stiles to love him back. Stiles was always clear, vocal about what he did or did not want. Even when he was uncertain about his own desires, he never made an impulsive move, never strung him along. Dealing with people’s emotions was not where Stiles wanted to take risks.

“That’s okay, Avery.” Stiles squeezed his arm and let out a little sigh. He smiled at his friend and shook his head. “I promise you can talk about Derek behind his back all you want. But for my sake, you have to pretend to get along in person.” The joke was meant for them all. Because Stiles really did need them to play nice until this was all over. Eventually, the Laredo pack would be returning to Nevada. The question remained, would that be with or without Stiles and Mariana?


	4. Chapter 4

“How did your pack even find him?” Scott asked, addressing Alpha Laredo. The introductions of all three packs went as smoothly as it could go. There was some hostility and confusion and a little bit of growling at unusual scents. But otherwise, nobody got hurt.

“I called Vieva to let her know that we got here safely,” Stiles answered for himself. “I didn’t know she was going to blow up my spot, though.”

Mariana - nestled cozily on Derek’s chest - hiccupped for the millionth time. Every time she did, her eyes flashed purple and her plush lion hovered into the air about an inch. Derek beamed at her with the broadest smile anyone had ever seen on him. “Good job, Mar,” he whispered, thoroughly distracted by her accidental bouts of magic. 

Stiles ventured a gentle touch to the back of Derek’s neck. He was proud of her too. And for all of the issues he and Derek had right now, he could be happy in the knowledge that Derek loved their daughter as much as Stiles himself did. 

“I had to tell Solene, Stiles. Everyone was worried when you were just gone,” Vieva said. “I feel bad for betraying your trust. But I am sworn to my alpha as emissary to protect the pack. The absence of you and Mariana – the most vulnerable member of our pack – simply spelled danger. Solene needed to know.”

“No, yeah. I get it. You have a job to do and you were trying to keep us safe.” Stiles was just annoyed that it meant adding another group of people, however small their numbers, into this already wild and overflowing mix.

Solene stepped up, focusing in on Derek and Scott in turn. “Alpha Hale, Alpha McCall, if you wouldn’t mind a private interlude for the three of us.” She gestured out of the living room, as if she knew where to go. “I think it’s important that we convene in a quiet place to discuss our intentions here before we begin.”

Derek blinked slowly. Solene spoke like his mother had with foreign alphas. She spoke with that same distrust and guarded formality that the former Hale matriarch knew so well. “Of course. We have a library. It’ll be private.” Derek, reluctant to let go of his little girl, passed Mariana back to Stiles and kissed them both on the head before leading the other two away.

In the library, Scott and Derek each took a seat in one of the plush armchairs and Derek offered another for Solene. She sat, albeit slowly, and folded her hands over her knee like a dome. She did not trust either of them. She did not like either of them. She was sitting with the alpha who abandoned his pregnant mate and with the alpha who essentially banished a powerful mage. No, she was not happy to be here with them right now.

But, she had called this meeting and she was going to make her part of this agreement known. “As far as I am concerned, you have a problem that all three of our packs need to take part in defeating. Not only because I fear that your unusual tribe of wendigos could spread nearer to Nevada and I can’t have that. But  also because you have chosen to drag my witch into this matter without my permission. And it’s my job to keep him safe.”

Derek and Scott exchanged a cryptic look but she continued, “Stiles’ magic is less stable than it was back home. Being here is stressful - being in this town with his past, and being asked to take care of the situation because you let it get out of hand in his absence.” Solene’s gaze hadn't left Scott as she spoke but now, she turned to Derek.

“We followed him here because I don’t dare risk him being on his own. If anything happened to a member of my pack because I was too proud or too lazy or too disinterested to be there, I would have no business calling myself their alpha.” Her words were targeted, unveiled, a strict rebuke on the both of them that neither Derek nor Scott could deny even as they hated hearing it.

Solene paused, long enough that Derek took it as their opportunity to speak to what she said. Maybe she wanted them to argue with her so she could write them off as entirely unforgivable. Instead of arguing, Derek pressed negotiations, like his mother would have. “What is your proposed plan, Alpha Laredo?”

“You may call me ‘Solene’, since we are getting to know each other.” She smiled in a grimace, too tight to be comfortable. “My pack is small and I have only brought one wolf and an emissary. But Vieva is also a talented healer. We will help rid Beacon Hills of this infestation, for lack of a better word. I want the wendigos killed and not driven out. If they live, they can kill more and can expand towards us.”

“That was always the plan,” Scott interrupted tersely. 

Solene was quick, “Your plan should have been handling this problem when there was only one you had to deal with. Now they mutated into their own pack – behavior not generally seen for their type. But this is where you are now.”

Derek held out a hand to silence Scott from trying to butt in again. Derek was better trained by his family to handle affairs with other pack leaders. Even when Laura was being groomed to be alpha, Derek was absorbing as much of it as he could. “I apologize, Solene. Tensions have been high for a while here. Go on.”

“Vieva will stay here along with whoever else needs to stay.” Solene relaxed slightly, more apt to discuss how to solve the problem at hand. “She will be ready to help tend to wounds as needed. Avery and I will go with the group to fight. Stiles will be protected by both of us closely.”

“Stiles isn’t going,” Derek said. He shook his head once in finality and crossed his arms.

“That’s the reason I called him here,” Scott countered, disbelief bleeding through his every word. “He’s a big part of getting rid of them all.”

Solene agreed, “He’s correct. Stiles was brought into this because he’s needed here. He’s powerful and I doubt we can do it without him.”

Derek wasn’t having it. “No, he’s not going out there. He’s safe in this house. He can help us plan and help set protections on us. But he is not going to put his life on the line again. We have a daughter who needs him. And even if Mariana wasn’t a factor, I don’t want to put Stiles in any danger ever again. He shouldn’t even be using his magic! He had a baby less than nine months ago. He’s in way too much pain to exert that kind of power.”

This time, a look passed between Scott and Solene. Scott took over. “Derek, I get you don’t want him at risk. But we need him for his magic. And we all know Stiles pretty well. Do you really think he’s going to sit back and let us fight without him? This is the same guy who used to follow the pack everywhere. He’s put himself in danger and saved Beacon Hills, like, a lot of times.”

“Yeah, and then you told him to leave Beacon Hills. Because he went too far with his magic and killed when you wouldn’t?” Derek snapped at Scott. “You only wanted him here to be useful to you again. But then what? You’re going to force him out again? Stiles didn’t deserve any of that.”

“You’re one to talk!” Scott, not wanting to be the one on trial, cut back. “You left him and the rest of us with no explanation. And then you never answered my calls. I tried getting you back here to deal with this earlier. But that didn’t happen. And now we need to use Stiles’ magic to our advantage. He’s going out there with us.”

Derek bared his teeth at Scott. “Stiles is staying here.” He punctuated his words with a red flash of his eyes. “That’s the end of it.”

Solene sat up straighter and said simply, “I think it’s best if we let Stiles choose where he wants to be. If he says he wants to go, then you’ll have to let him go.” She knew that Stiles would choose to go fight. Scott and Derek knew it too. It wouldn’t be a tie-breaker. It would be everyone against one extremely worried Alpha Hale.

Derek slumped back in his chair. He stared out the window next to him and watched the falling of misty rain over the trees. He used to love staying in when it was raining. He and Stiles would curl up on the couch and watch a movie or fall asleep nestled together. It was cozy and quiet and warm. Derek wondered if Stiles still liked the rain. He probably missed it living in the desert. They were lucky that Beacon Hills was far enough north that they got rain and snow. 

“Good,” Solene said with a pleased smile. She took Derek’s silence as his agreement. Besides, Stiles wasn’t going to let any alpha, or even three, tell him what to do. “With that out of the way...” she continued on. “We can help you to the best of our abilities. But I have left my territory and the rest of my pack alone and vulnerable. I formally request we execute a plan a quickly as possible, no more than three days. Then I will return home with my pack. None of us will stay any longer than that.” Once again, she found and held Derek’s attention, hoping he understood that she meant  _ everyone  _ in her pack.

“Hang on.” Derek waved his hands in front of him to clear the air – a particular mannerism that he undoubtedly adopted from watching Stiles. “You mean Stiles and Mariana?” He almost laughed. He might have laughed if Stiles would have been there to laugh with him. But Solene wasn’t laughing so he wasn’t laughing. “No, they’re staying with me. They aren’t going to Nevada again. I don’t care if Scott kicked him out. That bullshit is over.”

Scott geared up to defend his decision on the matter but Solene cut through again. “You can’t have them back.” Her tone left no room for argument.

“He’s my mate. That’s my daughter,” Derek protested, finger pointing angrily back towards the living room – he was grateful that no one could overhear this mess of a conversation.

“Stiles came to us when he was in need. We welcomed him in. He’s been a valuable addition. And we’ve helped care for him and Mariana just as he has cared for us,” she said. “Stiles might have started out in the Hale-McCall pack. But he’s a Laredo now. And Mariana was born into the Laredo pack, Hale or not. She’s one of us.”

Again, Derek growled low and long, teeth bared, eyes red, claws out. But it was worse this time. Here was another alpha trying to keep him away from his mate and his baby. Any sort of diplomatic niceties  were out the window in an instant. “Mariana is my blood. That means she belongs here in the Hale House with her family, her pack, and her alpha and father. And Stiles is and always will be my mate. He never should have been thrown out in the first place. And I never should have run away, either. But this is our home. I am his home.” 

His intimidating resolve cracked – falling into heartbroken desperation. Derek kept losing everybody he loved. And he kept blaming himself every single time. Stiles had always told him the Hale House fire wasn’t on him. But abandoning Stiles and their unborn baby was clearly his fault. He knew Stiles agreed with that, at least. But now he needed to have them back. Derek was going to fight tooth and nail to keep his mate and their amazing, miraculous, little baby. 

“Neither one of you wanted Stiles anymore,” Solene stated with a harsh edge. “But my pack does. We have enjoyed his company and taking care of him. He has given us so much of his knowledge and support. It’s been more symbiotic and balanced than what his role was within your pack before. They belong in our family now.”

It pained Derek to know that she was right about how Stiles had been underappreciated before. He was grateful to the Laredos for giving Stiles a home. But it was time for things to change within his and Scott's pack. Stiles needed to come back and they all needed to put the past behind them and treat everyone with more respect.

Even Scott, for how dense he was, recognized his mistake and wanted to bring his oldest friend back into the fold. Solene could even be persuaded, Derek thought, with the same conventional wisdom she had used before. “All of that notwithstanding,” Derek said, measured as he could be, “I think Stiles should get to decide this too. Once you are ready to return home, we have to let the choice be his as to whether he and Mariana will go to Nevada or come back to Beacon Hills permanently. Or, I suppose, wherever else he might want to go, with or without any of us. His decision.” 

Honestly, the biggest obstacle might end up being Stiles. He could very well choose to stay with the Laredos and tell Derek they were over for good. Derek wouldn’t blame Stiles if he didn’t want anything to do with any of them ever again. But none of them had any right trying to make this call for Stiles.

Solene accepted this truce easily. “Agreed. I won’t stand in his way if he chooses to move out of Laredo territory. He knows what’s best for himself and the baby. He’ll know what he wants.”

\---

Mariana rolled over on the ground, her tummy finding the soft fabric of the blanket under her. She grunted and smacked her hands on the ground. When she went nowhere, she gave Stiles a grumpy pout and wiggled.

“Oh, baby wolf, where do you want to go?” Stiles asked, laying down in front of her with Derek by his side. “You wanted to play on the ground. Maybe Daddy can help you build a block tower, huh?” 

Every time Stiles called Derek Mariana’s dad, it and gave him good goosebumps all up his arms. He was this adorable baby’s dad. “Here, Mar, let’s sit you up. Daddy can build a block tower for you. Mama can rest here while we play,” Derek offered.

This felt okay to Stiles. He wasn’t anxious or angry. He was with his daughter and her father and it was good. “She loves you too, you know.” Stiles could read the way Derek looked at her. It was the same way he looked at her, with pride, admiration, love, and loyalty. He didn’t used to understand how his parents could love him no matter what trouble he caused. They always told him he was the most important part of their lives and they would do anything for him. But he couldn’t grasp how deep a parent’s love went until he was one himself. Mariana was the most important thing now. He would do anything for her. And he would always love her.

“I really hope she does,” Derek whispered, enamored even with the way Mariana tried  wiping her nose on her hand. 

Stiles brought a tissue to Mariana’s nose and she protested with fists clenched and an objectionable whine. “Oh, so grouchy today,” Stiles laughed. He felt a warm hand on his hair and the press of Derek’s lips to his head. Given the climate of their relationship, Stiles knew he should tell him off for doing this four times today alone. But it was undeniably difficult to say no to, especially when they were having a family moment. “What did Solene say to you and Scott?”

“A lot.” Derek shook his head. “She does not like or trust either of us, I know that for sure.”

“Not surprised. Did you think she was going to be your best friend? But she’s not like that all the time. She’s fun, even. But I doubt she’s going to let her guard down while she is here. You’re testy with new people too, human or otherwise.”

“I can be charming. And fun, Stiles. Charismatic.”

“Yeah, when you are flirting to get something you want.”

Derek scoffed, offended at the accusation that he was a self-beneficial flirt. “I wouldn’t call it flirting.”

“I would.” Stiles had watched him try to charm police officers, nurses, shop attendants, waiters, witches, a vampire that one time. Usually, it was because they needed something from them. But after Stiles realized he was into  Derek, it was hard not to get jealous. At least he didn’t try to scare people off like Derek did if Stiles was being flirted with. Goddamn possessive werewolf nonsense like always.

Brushing Mariana’s hair back from her face, Derek continued, “Other than plans for fighting the wendigos, Solene had a lot to say on... a personal level. About her opinions on Scott and me. Also, a lot about you.”

Stiles shrugged. “I think I can guess what she had to say about you and Scott. What did she say about me?”

“She talked about how much the Laredo pack values having you with them. And she talked about how they have taken care of you and you to them.” He paused, a wash of worry and sadness covering his face. “Solene expects you’ll go back to Nevada to live with them still. I kind of expected you’d stay here with me. The three of us decided whatever you choose will be where you end up. Nevada or here or someplace else entirely. We aren’t going to butt in.”

Stiles could tell how much it hurt Derek and his wolf not to beg him to stay. But he had to appreciate how restrained he was trying to be. “And Scott agreed to this?” he asked tentatively. “Because if I choose... Beacon Hills...” If he chose Derek...

“Not in so many words, but he did agree to the resolution.” Gingerly, Derek lifted Stiles’ hand to his lips and kissed it, desperate for even that small of a connection. “It’s not his call anymore. It shouldn’t have been in the first place. But, like you said, I wasn’t here. I should never have left you for even a minute.”

Stiles took a deep breath in and out slowly. It was getting more challenging not to kiss him like he used to. “If we’re going to have this conversation now,” Stiles started, “I think I need a snack and something to drink first.”

Derek nodded and got up. “I’ll be back. Then we can talk about all of this. Thank you.”

Stiles waited patiently for Derek to come back. Mariana, not so much. She mumbled and whined and pointed to the door Derek left from. Her heightened senses told her he wasn’t far and maybe she could get to him if she tried. “Mama,” she complained again, eyes locked on Stiles as she lifted herself up on her hands and knees. 

“Oh, my god,” Stiles gasped. Mariana was trying to crawl. “Derek! Derek, she’s trying to crawl!” he shouted without taking his eyes off of her.

Derek, having heard the sudden uptick in Stiles’ heartbeat, had rushed back upstairs and was standing stock-still in the doorway watching. 

Mariana’s eyebrows furrowed together just like her daddy always did. And she crawled for the first time in her life towards her mama. Stiles waited with open arms for her to traverse the very short distance to him. She smacked her hands on his knee and giggled heartily. 

Stiles scooped her up and kissed her face all over. “You crawled, Sweetheart. You crawled for the first time!”

Derek pulled Stiles to him and praised their daughter, “You did it!” More kisses were given to the baby and she babbled on boastfully about her success, telling them all about the difficult journey from the floor to Mama.

“I love you so much, my sweet girl.” Stiles couldn’t keep tears from his eyes. His baby was growing up and it was all too fast for him, but he ached with pride and love. 

Derek brushed his fingers through Stiles’ hair and kissed his forehead. “I’m so happy I was here to see that. You have no idea.”

This meant the world to them both. But maybe, in a way, it meant even more to Derek. This was the only of Mariana’s firsts that he had witnessed. This felt like the real beginning of his role as her father. And Stiles could only stare up at Derek and let his mouth fall from a grin to lax, open longing. 

Their lips pressed together in their first kiss in eighteen months. Derek’s hand grazed gently up Stiles’ neck, still being mindful of Mariana between them. Stiles let his frustrations and fears temporarily sink off of him. 

Stiles still tasted like syrup and tree sap – like sweet gum or maple. Derek’s beard grazed Stiles’ skin, leaving him shivering. There was electricity and passion and a push and pull. There were memories of their whirlwind time together. Still the need to be together forever. There was still love.

“Stiles!” A concerned, questioning yell from downstairs had Stiles’ eyes flying open. 

All the lights in the bedroom were screaming bright, near blinding. He yanked back from Derek with a, “Fuck,” and the second they were parted, the lights snapped off with a low sizzle. “Fuck...”

Derek gathered himself and looked around, bewildered. “Did we do that?” he wondered, having to set aside his thoughts about the kiss for now.

“Nope, not ‘we’,” Stiles handed Mariana to Derek swiftly but gingerly. “I did.” He laid back on the floor, wincing in pain and breathing heavy. “Yep, that was me. Shit...”

“What’s wrong, Stiles? What hurts?” Derek hovered over him, cradling Mariana who was also concerned.

Stiles shook his head. “I’m fine.” It was a fairly standard response for him. He only complained when he felt like no one was paying enough attention to him. He claimed he was fine when he was in actual distress but didn’t want to worry people. 

“No, you’re not.” Tugging Stiles’ shirt up, Derek spread his hand on his chest and tried to work some of the pain away. It didn’t seem to be easing at all.

“That’s not going to work,” Avery strode into the bedroom, Vieva and Lydia behind him. “We can’t take pain a mage brings upon himself with magic – unintentional or not.” He sat at Stiles’ head and lifted him partially in his lap. “Stiles, you ready?”

Stiles nodded and squeezed his eyes shut. “Ready? Ready for what? Wait-” Derek tried to slow this down to understand what was about to happen but it was happening before the words could be heard.

Avery reeled his fist back and brought it down in a hard thump on Stiles’ chest. At the same time, Stiles muttered an arcane phrase in Latin or something that Derek couldn’t understand. White sparks crackled down Stiles’ body from his head to his feet. He groaned but kept his eyes shut tight and his lower lip bitten. The sparks evaporated from him almost as quickly as they came and the lights around the room shown again.

Stiles shook as  Avery helped him sit up, letting his hands linger longer than Derek would have liked. “What the hell was that?” Derek asked, checking Stiles over for new wounds or marks of any kind. 

“Accidental magic use can be a bitch. Accidental magic when your body is still recovering, that’s just un-fucking-fair,” Stiles said. Derek caught him as he slumped against his shoulder.

Lydia cleared her throat. “Let’s give them a minute. Stiles needs some air, I think.” They were hesitant to leave, especially Avery, but Lydia managed to get them out and close the door. Derek was endlessly grateful for her.

“Stiles, what just happened?” he asked trying to keep his voice quiet and easy. It was harder than he thought to keep the concern out of his tone. 

“Sometimes during extreme emotion, magic can just... happen. And magic that isn’t done on purpose, for a purpose, and with control of the user, can be dangerous and painful.” Stiles looked exhausted. But he continued, “It’s different when you’re a kid or you’re learning. Accidents are part of it. It’s not dangerous. But once you  _ have  _ control, losing control is, essentially, punished.” He took in Derek’s confused, scrunchy face and rolled his eyes. “My magic just punished me for having bad self-control while kissing you. I let my emotions try to do magic because I was... distracted. And that could have been bad. Thankfully, I’m the only one who got hurt.”

Preferably, no one would have to get hurt. But Derek understood Stiles didn’t have a choice in it. “And... what did Avery just do?” he asked, nervous to hear the answer. In part, because he didn’t like that Avery knew how to help Stiles when he couldn’t. Except, his jealousy needed to take a backseat for the moment.

“I had to rid myself of all the energy from the lights, he had to help by giving it a boost out of me.” Stiles spoke like this was all boilerplate stuff – like Derek should know this from his Magic 101 class or something. “And, yes, before you ask, my chest does hurt now. But, before you get mad,  Avery did the right thing.”

Knowing that it had to be done didn’t make Derek feel any better about it. He nuzzled in Stiles’ neck, scenting him and listening to his heart beating. “I’m really sorry. Had I have known...”

“You wouldn’t have gone through with kissing me? No, I don’t believe that.” Stiles chuckled weakly - a good sign he was starting to feel better. “We’ve never been good at keeping it together when we kiss. How do you think Mariana got here? At least we can say we don’t do things half-assed.”

“Stiles, I think you’re delirious from that shock to your system.” Now that he knew Stiles was okay, Derek was smiling too, trying to relax again. “Next time we kiss, let’s try to give each other a warning so we can prevent magical disasters.”

A grin crept across Stiles’ face and he wondered casually, “Next time? You just decided for yourself that there would be a next time?”

Derek might have crumpled in a sobbing mess right that second if Stiles said there would never be a next time. “Yes, I did. Are you okay with that?”

Stiles didn’t take his time to think it over. Given how emotionally raw and romantically charged that first kiss was, he didn’t have to wonder. He would be able to forgive Derek and move past their issues. It would take some time, sure. But they just might get this thing to work in the end. “Yes, there can be a next time.”

\---

The house wasn’t as empty as Stiles would have liked. Scott and most of his betas had left for the night. Some of the Hale pack was tasked with a grocery store run. But that still left a few who were staying and the three Laredos. Stiles would have preferred if he, Derek, and Mariana could have the place just to themselves for a few hours. They needed to talk.

Knowing they weren’t going to get any more privacy than this, Derek shut the door to the master bedroom and came to sit with Stiles on the bed. He had reluctantly agreed to leave the baby downstairs in the care of the Laredos. Stiles trusted them and Derek knew it wasn’t his call anyway. 

“When did you become the  guy who wanted to talk about relationship problems?” Stiles joked, trying to mask his hesitancy to have this conversation. 

Derek took Stiles’ hand in his – needing to anchor himself to him already. “Probably when I caused all the relationship problems in the first place.”

“Oh, good point.” Stiles nodded. “Good self-awareness, Babe.” 

They were both so tired that it was coming out in an odd, reserved, dry sort of humor that wasn’t normal for the two of them. Stiles, over the years, had helped Derek come out of his shell, be more personable, fun and enthusiastic. And Derek helped Stiles mature, pull back, learn how to be confident in his intelligence, and not be taken advantage of as much. No one could pull them apart. And then Derek went and did it on his own.

“Stiles, I...” Derek started, aware that whatever he said about his choices could never be excuses. All he could do was hope that Stiles would forgive him. “I left because I got scared. That’s always why I run away. I’m just a coward who avoids dealing with things because I’m afraid of the worst possible outcome.”

Stiles laughed mirthlessly and squeezed Derek’s hand. “You know, before, I would have told you how wrong you are and that you aren’t a coward.  But, you might be on to something there.” He didn’t think Derek was a coward, but Derek had a point about how he handled things. “I know you get in your head and you take on all this guilt. It’s infuriating to see someone I love think everything is their fault all the time.”

“I know. I get it.” Derek sighed. There were things Stiles felt about himself that frustrated Derek and made him want to drill into Stiles’ head how backwards his thinking was.

Derek continued, “Listen, you know as well as I do  that I’m a work in progress. And you are too. But we work together. Stiles, we know each other in and out. I believe that.” Even the fact that Derek was able to have this talk, with self-reflexivity and insight into their relationship, was evidence enough for how they were better together. “That’s why I’m not going to try to convince you of anything. Or make excuses for anything. Or give you a history lesson into my shitty decisions in life and why I am the way I am...” God, they really needed therapy. “You know all of it anyway. You know me.”

“I know you.” Stiles kept his mouth relatively shut, thinking it was better to let Derek lead this. That alone was a challenge he had to conquer over time, and he still was no master at it. “So... no convincing, no excuses, no history lesson. Why did you leave me?”

Derek listened to the uptick in Stiles’ heartbeat and his own heart nearly broke. This was the answer to the big question that had plagued Stiles for almost two years. Knowing Stiles, he had a million theories, plenty without any real evidence, that might lead him to some mystery to uncover. But, for all the unknown fictions his mate probably came up with in his head, there was no fighting off the blunt, uninteresting, sad truth of reality. There was no conspiracy. Derek wasn’t running from the law or some evil supernatural force. He wasn’t an undercover spy sent on a new mission. Or whatever outrageous plots Stiles had followed.

“I ran away because I know you are my mate, I saw us getting closer, and I worried I would be your biggest mistake.” He exhaled slowly. “And I didn’t want to be the reason you were unhappy. Which I realize, given everything that happened since, was a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

None of that was what Stiles wanted to hear. Although, any answer wouldn’t have been. But this was so simple and so common for Derek’s brand of self-doubt. Maybe Stiles was upset that he couldn’t be angry at Derek for this. Because Derek was still working on himself and fighting those negativities; so was Stiles, like Derek had pointed out. “So, you thought you weren’t good enough for me and I deserved better and wouldn’t have been happy with you...” Stiles shook his head, looking down at their clasped hands and then into Derek’s troubled eyes. “I guess there’s no use in telling you that you’re a big moron for thinking all that?”

The aforementioned moron shook his head solemnly. “No. I’ve had your voice in my head for so long now. You were screaming at me to stay before I even decided to go. I should have listened. I need to listen to you more in general.” He smiled uncertainly. 

“Yeah, honestly, when will you and everyone else learn that I’m a genius and nothing I say should be questioned.” It was easier to joke than pick through the jumbled emotions he was feeling.

“I’ll work on that.” Derek pressed his lips to the Stiles’ forehead. “You have every right to be as angry at me as you want to be. If you don’t want to or can’t forgive me, that’s... fine. But, in that case, please just let me be a father to Mariana. I will keep my distance from you and us, but I need to be with her when you will let me. But if you think we can move past this and be together again - have that wild, confusing thing we used to - I promise never to leave again. I promise to be better as a father, your mate, a husband, an alpha, and a man.” Tears glistened and dropped down Derek’s face. He hadn’t even known they were there until Stiles was brushing them away. Leave it to Stiles to get him this worked up. “You never stopped being the most important part of my life, Stiles, not for an instant.”

“Come here, come here... Derek.” Stiles kissed Derek hard twice. He rested his head on his shoulder, cradling him in his arms and keeping him secure. As always, Stiles felt the overwhelming need to comfort. And it was worse with Derek. “I’m mad that you left, but I can’t be mad about why. I know you struggle, and I can’t punish you for that. I’m mad that I ended up hurt and you weren’t there for the pregnancy or her first birthday.” He gasped and squeezed tighter to Derek. “But I love you and that never stopped for either. Trust me, I tried. I hated myself for not being able to let you go. But I can’t.”

Derek kissed Stiles again, more heated this time. “You have no idea how happy I am that you couldn’t let me go. Because I need you. And I know you feel the same. And now we have a daughter who needs us too. And I am going to do everything I can to make it up to both of you.”

“Just stay,” Stiles whispered, barely louder than dust floating through the air. His grip on Derek was relentless, like he was afraid that if he let go of him then Derek would already be gone, a mirage, a tortuous daydream. “I don’t care. I forgive you – or, I will. I’ll get over it. But just stay with us now. That's all I want.”

Derek nodded furiously. “Stiles, I promise. If you want to go back to Nevada, I’ll come too. Cora can have the Hale House. You and Mariana are more important. My family will understand – a house is just a house and they will always be my family. But you two come first. We can go anywhere you want. Or we can stay in Beacon Hills. I don’t care. You’re my priority, Stiles.”

“I love you,” Stiles whimpered. His fingers found Derek’s beard and affectionately scratched their way up into his hair. “I missed you... I love you.”

Derek’s relieved laughter bubbled in the air between them. “I missed you too. On my life, I’m yours.”


	5. Chapter 5

“You’re sure, Stiles?” Derek asked in a low whisper, mindful not to wake up Mariana who was deep asleep in her crib. 

“Dude, you have to stop asking me.” Stiles leveled Derek with an unamused stare. “I already told you ten times I’m going. Solene and Scott are right, you guys need me.”

Derek took Stiles’ hand in his. “You can change your mind. We can handle it. And you really shouldn’t be doing powerful magic right now.”

“I’m pretty sure you promised two cranky alphas that this decision would be left up to me and you wouldn’t try to convince me otherwise.” He knew Derek was just worried about him. Derek was pretty much always worried about him. But Stiles wasn’t one to shy away from the fight. And he didn’t think it was fair that people kept telling him not to do magic just because he had a baby recently. It was old-school conventional wisdom, but it didn’t hurt Mariana in any way. Yes, he was in pain. But it was his pain, and he could handle it. Stiles still firmly believed that werewolves, especially born wolves, were just big babies about pain. Humans don’t heal like wolves. They have to deal with it and move on.

“I’m not trying to convince you to change your mind. I’m just saying that you could if you have any reservations about this.”

Stiles rolled his eyes. “Stop it, Derek. I’m going. I’m serious.”

Derek ducked his head in apology and pressed closer to Stiles. “Fine. I’ll stop.” He nosed at the crook of Stiles’ neck and whispered, “I just want to keep you safe.”

It’d been a while since Stiles felt this trusting of Derek. The last few days were transformative for the two of them. Stiles shed his anger and resentment. He was still working on the forgiveness. Who would have thought this is where he would end up in life? It wasn’t what he expected, but he loved it all the same. He loved Mariana and he loved Derek. “You’re  gonna be distracted out there if you keep stressing.” 

Derek leaned into Stiles’ scent and the sound of his heartbeat. There was nothing in the world as reassuring and calming to him as that. Even before they were together, he would focus in on Stiles to bring him back to earth. There could be a mess of a crowd and he could still find Stiles. He made Derek whole.

“I miss being with you like this,” Derek said, looking back up at Stiles with hooded, remorseful eyes. “I should have turned the fuck around and came back. Jesus... I’m an idiot.” 

“You’ve got to stop that.” It was a far cry from Stiles’ attitude even three days ago. But he knew it would be easier for him to get over this if he and Derek did it together. “The three of us are together now. And I’m not as mad. It’s... surprising how easy love makes it to forgive. God, I sound so fucking cheesy saying that. Being a parent has made me soft and gooey, Derek. I’m a chocolate chip cookie of a man. It’s ridiculous.”

Derek chuckled. “Stiles, you have the most forgiving heart of anyone I’ve met. You’re good at seeing the person behind it all.” He was speaking mostly about himself and all that Stiles had done for him. But there were endless examples. He helped Jackson when he was the kanima, he helped Derek’s betas even though they treated him like shit for while, and now here he was defending Beacon Hills again. 

“Are you flirting with me, Alpha Hale? I think you are. Trying to butter me up. You do know I have a kid with you already?”

Derek sighed. “Yes, Stiles, I know.” He kissed him again. “I’m just trying to say how much I admire you. I don’t think I said it enough.”

Stiles' hand traveled up Derek’s side, feeling every inch of the body he used to be wrapped up in every night. He missed how Derek would listen to him talk for too long. He missed the way Derek kissed him when they had been apart for more than a few minutes. He missed arguing about something mundane and then falling into bed together. He missed how he could get Derek to laugh and loosen up. He missed the home they had starting making in one another. But he was grateful now that they were building it back.

\---

They ended up much deeper in the woods than Stiles anticipated. He was getting more anxious about being away from Mariana as they trekked on. But he was determined to get this shit settled and get back to her as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, it was a stealth mission that required a lot of patience and well-planned maneuvering. They had already been out there for two hours by the time they came to the ravine. Stiles used his magic to cloak their scents, but after this long, it was starting to wear on him. “Just tell me when,” he whispered to the group at large, even though he knew he was under Scott’s command. 

“Don’t drop it yet,” Scott whispered back. “Spread out.”

Derek peeled off to the left when Stiles did, trailing silently behind him. But once Scott gave Stiles the signal and he let go of the charm keeping their scents undetectable, the fight moved fast as hell. The wendigos reacting instantly, springing up from the ravine and launching toward the nearest meal they laid eyes on. The wolves attacked with claws, fangs, and brute force. Kira fought with her sword, Allison her bow. And Stiles was doing all he could with defensive magic.

Stiles blocked one off with a surge of wind as he finished off another with a lung lock. Thankfully, wendigos couldn’t last near as long without taking a breath as most creatures. Unfortunately, His concentration broke when he heard a loud growl behind him.  Avery was down, a hand wrapped around his leg, claws digging into his flesh. “ Avery !” Stiles bolted towards him. 

Stiles was knocked to the ground by a heavy force. Fear shot through his system as he anticipated the pain of being mauled to death. When it didn’t come, he realized he had been pushed out of the way by one of the  pack instead.

Solene managed to rip the wendigo off of her brother and kill it quickly.  Avery was still on the ground but Stiles could see his leg starting to heal already. He was relieved. But only for a moment. 

Another snarl erupted through the trees, this time coming from the biggest, strongest, and final wendigo. Stiles whipped around in time to watch the creature clamp its jaws around Derek’s shoulder. Derek roared in pain and Stiles felt a sharp ache in his own shoulder. 

Before it could react, Stiles was tearing into the monster with everything he could give. Derek was his and this wendigo wasn’t allowed to take him. Stiles had lost him one too many times already. It seemed to understand its mistake as Scott and Kira came to help, followed quickly by the others. It was ultimately Allison with an arrow in its eye that got the thing to let go of Derek. 

This allowed all the wolves to easily take over – which couldn’t have come soon enough for Stiles. He had used himself up with an onslaught of elemental attacks that left his body feeling like it was on fire. His head pounded like a jackhammer. His heart raced faster than during any of his panic attacks. But he needed to help Derek.

“You’re in pain,” Derek wheezed when Stiles touched his face. 

“Yeah, so are you,” Stiles answered plainly, assessing the large oval of puncture wounds from the wendigo’s teeth. The diameter of the wound stretched roughly ten inches over Derek’s shoulder. And it wasn’t healing. “Okay, okay, fuck. Derek, you’re not healing.” Stiles started to panic.

Now finished with the last of the creatures,  Solene came beside Stiles. “Some sort of poison, Stiles. We need to get him to Vieva, now.” 

\---

Derek was in and out of consciousness. Vieva, with Stiles’ help, worked as quickly as she could. There was no way of knowing exactly what was affecting Derek’s healing. These new mutant wendigos were beyond her scope of knowledge. All she knew was that something in its saliva was poisonous to wolves. So, she was trying all the anecdotes she could think of. 

Stiles’ job was to help her rub every new mixture into Derek’s wounds and then watch closely for it to work or not. Derek was at least aware enough to know it was his mate’s hands on him. If it were anyone else, his fuzzy consciousness might have tried to push them off. Instead, he held loosely to Stiles’ shirt and kept focus on his heartbeat. 

“You’re okay, Baby,” Stiles whispered, kissing Derek’s forehead after wiping away more sweat. He knew it was risky, but he kept sending minuscule electric shocks through his body every time Derek was about to go under. He let him have moments of reprieve, but if Stiles felt him slipping his grip on his shirt, he forced him awake again with a crackle.

Derek had been the one, according to Allison, that shoved Stiles out of the way of the wendigos. He took on the big one when it was coming for him. And he took a poisonous bite that was probably meant for him. After all, he was the spark. He was a good, easy target. And magic interference was a harder fight than just a bunch of creatures fighting each other with strength alone.

This was how it had always been – Derek saved Stiles then Stiles saved Derek then Derek saved Stiles again. And on. 

“Shit. Vieva, look!” When Stiles gingerly rubbed the latest concoction over the bites, the blood stopped. “This one is working. It’s working.” The bright red inflammation waned and Derek was able to keep his eyes open on his own. 

“Here, Stiles, I have more.”  Vieva scooped more of the paste into Stiles’ hands and he made quick work of spreading it. The discoloration receded and the punctures themselves slowly started to stitch back together. “It might take a while. But it’s working.”

Stiles sighed in relief, his  whole body relaxing. He draped himself over Derek’s chest, careful not to touch his shoulder. “I love you,” he muttered so softly to his mate. “Don’t leave me ever again.”

Derek, awake but exhausted, wrapped his uninjured arm around Stiles and held him tight. “I promise.”

\---

Leaving Nevada and the Laredo pack was bittersweet. Stiles was happy to return home to Beacon Hills - to his father and Lydia and, of course, Derek. But he was going to miss his Nevada pack and his little house that was just big enough for him and Mariana.

He said his goodbyes, promising to visit and inviting them to stay at the Hale House when they wanted to. Constance and Tristan were the easiest. They had been close but not like he was with the others. Solene was harder – Stiles thanked her over and over again for taking him in and giving him a home when he was pregnant and lost. With Vieva, they just cried and hugged and didn’t say a word. There was nothing either of them could say that the other wasn’t already thinking. And Stiles knew he would be calling her all the time for advice or help with magic or anything she was better at than him. 

But saying goodbye to Avery was the worst. For one, Stiles knew he was in love with him. It made it difficult for their goodbye to be as open-ended as the others. He could tell Avery that he was welcome to visit him, but Avery wouldn’t want to come into his and Derek’s home and watch them together. Their goodbye was final for now. All Stiles could do was hope he found someone else and moved on. Because Avery was an important friend. He took care of him and the baby, absolutely prepared to drop anything and everything if they needed him. He was selfless and just wanted to love and be loved. He was a lot like Derek in that way. But now Stiles was leaving and he felt the loss of a friend who would need some time before they could pick things up again. Stiles was sad, but he could be patient.

It was even more heartbreaking to watch the Laredo pack say goodbye to his daughter. Solene officially gave her blessing for Mariana’s alpha to be her father Derek, but she made it clear that Stiles and the baby would always be considered a part of her pack unofficially. They were always welcome. Vieva - the one who performed the surgery to deliver the baby, the first one to hold her - cried and kissed her head and told her how much she would miss her.  Avery was an even bigger mess. He couldn’t say anything to her through his tears. Mariana cooed at him and tried to cheer him up but only got frustrated when it didn’t work. 

“Baby Girl, I promise we will see them soon,” Stiles told her as he buckled her up in the car seat. “They are still part of your family. Daddy said they can come to  us, we can go to them. Don’t you worry for a second.” It wasn’t clear if he was trying to soothe her or himself.

\---

Unpacking everything didn’t take long with all the help they had. The sun was just setting once they decided to call it a day. The master bedroom was rearranged to accommodate Derek and Stiles’ nightstands, clothes, and favorite blankets. 

Boyd and Erica set up the nursery while they had been away in Nevada. The walls were light grey and the furniture was all green. They bought her several new outfits and shoes. But most importantly, there was a stack of plush animals three feet high. 

“I think they went a little overboard.” Stiles watched Mariana try her best to pick up a big giraffe but it was too much for her to handle.

“No, they didn’t. She’s our little girl, she deserves a mountain of plushies, Stiles.” Derek scooped up his daughter and the giraffe and bounced her in his arms. “Daddy can hold the giraffe for you, Mar.”

Mariana shrieked happily and squished the giraffe’s face on her own. “I think she’s trying to scent the plushie.” Stiles was always impressed with how naturally her werewolf side came out despite not having her alpha and father with her until now. 

Derek beamed at Stiles and pulled him in for a kiss. “She’s smart like her Mama.”

“And strong like her Daddy.” Stiles nestled into Derek’s side, letting himself finally relax. He and Mariana were safe. They were where they belonged. This was his family. Now he could finally rest, get his feet back under him, live the life he’d wanted for so long. This ridiculous, wonderful, mystifying, frustrating, perfect life.

\---

Twenty-One Months Later:

“I hate you.”

“I know.”

“I mean it, Derek.” Stiles was five months pregnant. And right now, during his crankiest stage, he blamed Derek entirely. “We should have waited a little longer after Sky.”

Derek huffed and rolled his eyes. They’d had this conversation pretty much every day for a week now. “Yeah, and who was the one who begged me to knot him even though it was the full moon, huh? You knew what we were getting into. That’s a guaranteed baby.”

Stiles grumbled to himself and sat down at the kitchen table, refusing to help Derek with the dishes anymore. “That’s irrelevant.”

Skylar Vallen Hale-Stilinski was born not long after his sister turned a year and half old. And then, like a present for Stiles and Derek, they learned out he was pregnant again right around Mariana’s second birthday.

“It’ll be okay, Stiles. Sky will turn one before the twins get here. It’s not going to be as hectic as you think. You forget that I grew up in a big family. You’re an only child. Trust me on this one.” Derek kissed his husband's forehead and then his lips, before backing off when Stiles scowled at him.

“So, we will have a daughter just leaving her terrible twos, a son who will be walking on his own exploring everything, and twin newborns. Sounds pretty damn hectic to me, Derek.” 

Mariana padded into the  kitchen, her lion tucked under her arm. “Mama, I want more juice.” She held her sippy cup up for Stiles who took it gently. 

“Mar, there’s  wolfie teeth marks all over this lid,” he observed but still poured more orange juice for her. “Do your teeth still hurt?”

Derek squatted down beside her and looked at her gums where her fangs descend. “They don’t look swollen or anything.”

Mariana shook her head. “No, I just like gnawing.”

“Well, that’s not a surprise, Sweetheart, you’ve always been a biter.” Stiles chuckled and handed her the cup back. “Let’s go back to the living room with Sky. You can pick a movie for us.”

Skylar was asleep in his playpen, sprawled out over a blanket and holding tight to his hippo plush. Stiles brushed his wild hair back from his face and gave him a soft kiss. He loved all his children so much. And he was excited about the twins. He was nervous, but he was nervous with the other two as well. At least he had Derek for this pregnancy and the last. 

When it came down to it, he wasn’t mad at Derek for the twins at all - which they both understood. He just needed to complain and it was better to change things up so he wasn’t always whining about his feet hurting or his back or his neck ... or any part of him really. 

Stiles was happy and had been for a while now. And he was happy to mold to Derek when he joined him on the couch. “Mariana is picking a movie.”

“Are you going to cuddle me or are you still annoyed?” Derek asked, already knowing the answer.

“Yes, I’m going to cuddle you. Shut up. I love you, Daddy Derek.” Stiles gave him a warm, apologetic kiss. “Our babies love their daddy too.” 

“I love all my babies.” Derek slipped his hand protectively over Stiles’ pregnant belly and nuzzled close. “And I love you, their Miracle Mama.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. <3


End file.
